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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... View full entry
Charles Munger, the billionaire investor whose proposed design for a monolithic, partly windowless dormitory at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) was the subject of a public controversy that drew critical ire and the eyes of outside media, passed away yesterday at his home in... View full entry
In late October 2023, the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) embarked on a new phase in its quest for expanded student housing. As reported by The Santa Barbara Independent, Vice Chancellor Garry MacPherson announced the selection of two architectural firms to develop housing for... View full entry
Charles Munger is back in the news after some insensitive comments made over the weekend re-entered the debate over windowless dormitories and student housing scarcity nationwide. Yahoo! Finance is reporting on comments the would-be billionaire designer of the derided and then dropped... View full entry
Appearing to substantiate reports that UCSB’s controversial Munger Hall proposal has been scrapped, the university issued a formal “request for qualifications” this week for architectural firms to design a new student housing project at the same campus location previously reserved for Munger Hall. — Santa Barbara Independent
After Santa Barbara Independent Executive Editor Nick Welsh hinted at the end of the infamous "Dormzilla" student housing plan in a scathing editorial in mid-July, UC Santa Barbara's recently published RFQ for the "construction of the UCSB Student Housing Infill and Redevelopment Project" at the... View full entry
Mayor Eric Adams opened a new window into his vision for building New York City out of the current housing crisis, with a riff on “dormitory” style accommodations [...]
During a conversation on Monday at the Greene Space, New York Public Radio's live events venue, Adams said he wants to 'do a real examination' of the laws that require windows in bedrooms — a major tweak that could make it easier for developers to convert empty offices into apartments.
— Gothamist
The Mayor’s comments in favor of window features found in Dormzilla-like residential design caught the ire of critics, who were quick to illustrate its potential fire hazards and physiological impacts. Adams’ suggestion seems a bit at odds with the city’s push to deliver better... View full entry
A new independent review produced by a 13-member panel made up of faculty and community members at the University of California, Santa Barbara has outlined a host of health and safety risks inherent in the contested Munger Hall megadorm design proposal. The report cited the need for Covid-safe... View full entry
New details have emerged of the controversial Munger Hall student accommodation planned for the University of California, Santa Barbara. The updated scheme has seen two levels removed from the original design, from eleven to nine stories. The changes come as UCSB prepares to submit an... View full entry
A new report from the industry group RealPage indicates the extent to which the pandemic and certain societal trends related to higher education have impacted construction starts on private student housing developments nationwide. The 175-school survey showed overall construction is now in a lag... View full entry
In an amazing rebuke of their university’s purblind pursuit of the Munger Hall megadormitory project last week, students at the University of California, Santa Barbara staged a public forum in order to showcase research-based alternatives to the development and long-term strategic plan. Led by... View full entry
Not giving up is an important aspect of undergraduate learning, and the University of California, Santa Barbara is neatly reinforcing that lesson by offering a new preview of its besmirched Munger Hall megadorm project seven months following the initial public rollout. Billionaire donor Charles... View full entry
What can be said of a world where one billionaire wants to build a giant tulip-shaped tower of little practical use and another wants to house thousands of students in windowless rooms in a block with all the charm of an Amazon distribution centre? — The Guardian
The Observer critic further continued his contrasting of Foster + Partner’s failed Tulip Tower with the Munger Hall development in California, claiming that each was the vanity project of a wayward billionaire. “Both projects seem driven by ego, but in the wide space between the brutal... View full entry
The AIA Los Angeles chapter has issued an open letter to the President of the University of California, voicing opposition to the proposed UCSB Munger Residence Hall. The project, which has gained an intense media spotlight both within and beyond architectural spheres, would see the... View full entry
More architects are speaking out in the controversy surrounding the planned Munger Hall development at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The Santa Barbara Independent is reporting that eight architects representing several different UC campuses sent administrators a letter dated... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects Santa Barbara (AIASB) has sent an open letter to the Chancellor of the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) in opposition to the controversial Munger Hall student residence. The letter, delivered in email format, was led by AIASB President Tai Yeh and... View full entry
