Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and Mithun have announced they are collaborating on a new student housing project for the University of California, Santa Barbara (USCB). 

The two-phase project will deliver accommodations for 4,000 students by 2029, led by the new 2,140-bed San Benito complex that will be completed in time for Fall 2027 after a two-year construction.

News of what appears to be the replacement for the infamous Munger Hall comes five months after the passing of its namesake Charles Munger in November at the age of 99. (SOM has previously completed the school's San Joaquin Villages and Tenaya Towers residences in 2019.)

UCSB has been embroiled in a student housing crisis that mirrors other public university campuses in the state and has been largely exacerbated by the exclusivity of real estate and dearth of affordable developments in the surrounding community of Goleta.

This led to the controversial self-design proposal for a mostly windowless 3,500-bed dorm building that was advanced by Munger's philanthropic contributions before public backlash led to its cancellation just prior to the start of the 2023-24 academic year. 

SOM says the design for San Benito will form as four rows of 6- to 8-story structures staggered east-to-west to create scenic views of the Goleta Slough and Pacific Ocean beyond. A two-story plinth supports the development, which is punctuated on its north-south axis by a pedestrian path connecting the complex to Mesa and Stadium Roads.

The brief's call for seven smaller structures to be realized first at the northwest corner and later southeast end of UCSB's thousand-acre campus reflects at least one of the recommendations put forth by students in alternate proposals that were presented in June 2022 with the help of professor Rita Bright. 

The second phase of building will concentrate on the southeastern corner of campus and begin planning over the summer after an expected final approval for the first phase's concept design and construction comes from the UC Board of Regents in May.

“San Benito will provide critically needed affordable, apartment-style housing and an amenity-rich program with a healthy market at the heart — creating a vibrant residential community on a distinctive part of the UCSB campus,” Mithun's Principal Damian Possidente said. “Innovative living and learning environments combine with on-site student services to support the full range of student needs, from academics to social and emotional wellbeing.”

SOM has also stated its aim of obtaining a LEED Platinum certification for the design.