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New Residence Buildings
91ĹÝÜ˝ (SFU) is committed to engaging students and partnering with them in learning, discovery and community engagement. The University’s Strategic Plan emphasizes the need to help students gain practical experience, social aptitudes and civic understanding. With these guiding principles in mind, SFU's Residence and Housing Department engaged a consultant to create a Housing Master Plan which was completed in 2015. Since then, SFU has completed phases one (2020) and two (2023) of the five-phase master plan. Phase 3 of the Housing Master Plan focuses on housing for upper year students. This 8-store student housing building showcases self contained studios and four-bedroom apartments, offering 445 new on-campus housing beds.
Phase 2: Courtyard Residence - Completed 2023
Phase 3: New Residence buildings
Student Housing Master Plan – Strategic Revision
Stakeholder-driven planning principles include:
- Community – neighbourhood appeal, convenient access to “village” amenities
- Flexibility – furnishing options, customizable living space
- Technology – wireless internet, security and monitoring systems for energy use and other utilities
- Innovation – reconfigurable rooms conducive to collaborative, experiential learning “at home”.
- Sustainability – natural light, positive ventilation, recycling programs, monitoring systems for energy use and other utilities
This approach has enabled SFU to offer accommodation that respond to student preferences and are more appropriate to a student’s year of study. Accordingly, more students benefit from the exceptional academic and social support offered through SFU’s Residence Life programming.
Responding to student needs
Since 2018, SFU has planned and constructed three new student housing buildings on the Burnaby campus - East and West Buildings, Courtyard Residence and Grad and Family Housing, bringing on line 941 new beds. Of this total, 851 beds were dedicated to first and second year students, while the remaining 90 units were dedicated to graduate students and students with families.
Student Housing Master plan
SFU’s Student Housing Master Plan outlines SFU’s commitment to an intentional student community model that supports the academic experience and allows students to thrive. The plan ensures unit types and amenities appropriate for students in-residence, addressing various ages and year of study and recommending spaces that provide opportunities for students to grow and develop through the housing system with options that appeal to their diverse needs.
The plan is the result of an extensive consultation process with a variety of key university groups including students, faculty, professional and student staff, university executives and administrative staff. The planning process also included two web-based surveys sent to all SFU students to understand housing preferences and to determine a student housing demand analysis by unit type. Additionally, a student housing market survey for Surrey students was conducted in 2016.
Download the master plan: The master plan 2015 - 2035 (PDF)
Strategic Revision
As part of 91ĹÝܽ’s ongoing efforts to modernize facilities and strengthen the SFU experience, the university is undertaking a review of the 2015–2035 Housing Master Plan to ensure the plan reflects the significant changes in housing, enrollment and community needs over the past decade. The Housing Master Plan is part of the overall SFU Campus Master Plan, which is also being updated in conjunction with the City of Burnaby’s Official Community Plan. SFU has retained an external consulting group with experience in student housing and higher education to gather information from key groups. A final report is expected by the end of 2025 that will provide a data-informed, 10-year roadmap (2025–2035) for student housing that prioritizes growth, renewal, accessibility and affordability.
Goals:
- Create a self-supporting and financially-sustainable housing operation.
- Ensure the goals of student engagement, as well as SFU’s academic mission, are met.
- Provide student housing, related amenities and/or learning facilities to recruit and retain high-performing students.
- Identify areas for new student residential facilities and define the renovation, repurposing or replacement of existing facilities.
- Ensure that all residences align with the principles of universal design and have accessible options for students with disabilities.
- Identify potential locations of student commons and/or programming spaces that support a successful student experience.
- Plan for the replacement of Louis Riel House and Madge Hogarth House.
- Provide for a centralized office suite for all Residence and Housing administrative staff to improve internal departmental functions and services to students.
- Develop a plan that aligns with the University’s goals of indigenization, internationalization and environmental sustainability.
- Create opportunities to provide a home-away-from-home for commuter students to improve overall student engagement.