Four Shoreland houses will be combined into two upon moving to the new dorm, according to resident heads of the impacted houses. Hale and Filbey, and Bradbury and Dudley, the Shoreland’s top four floors, will be merged.
“These houses indicated they were open to a merger” as communicated by resident heads, said Katie Callow-Wright, director of undergraduate housing. She also cited strong house identity and inter-house friendship as reasons for the particular combinations.
However, the merger has raised concerns among some students about competition for four-person apartments; each new house, including the composite ones, will have just four of these coveted quads. Twice as many upperclassmen, who have seniority in the lottery, will be competing for the same rooms.
This apprehension is already affecting some students’ housing decisions. “I’d really like a quad in the new dorm, but it seems unlikely,” said Andrea Alejandra Núñez, a Hale house first-year. “I might live in Broadview next year if I can’t get one.”
Callow-Wright said a decision has not been reached about room competition, though specific details will be announced about the pending house lottery by the end of the quarter. She added that a division of apartments between the two houses or an alternating lottery between the merging houses were possible solutions. “We’re really open to suggestions,” she said.
It is also unclear which resident heads (RH) will make the move with their house to the new dormitory. Because each combined house will have just one RH pair, the other set will not be able to move with its residents. Only one pair of resident heads from Bradbury and Dudley is seeking the position, but both Hale and Filbey RHs sets are seeking assignment. Callow-Wright said that no resident heads will lose their positions as a result of the merging but would be transitioned to another house.
Resident heads from all four houses declined to comment.
But those in merging houses do have one thing to look forward to; the housing office has announced that they will be placed in the upper floors of the building, with rooms overlooking the Midway.
