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5 Trends to Ace Student Housing Amenities
“Intentional design should be focused through the belief that space is inextricably tied to use, place, and social custom.” – Mark Mitchell
On February 13th and 14th, professionals in the student housing industry came together for NAA’s Campus Connex event covering student housing amenity trends. The event included a panel of four people: Chris Coleman from American Campus Communities; Robin Connolly from The University of Texas System; Brian Ward with NILES Bolton Associates, and BSB Design’s own Mark Mitchell.
We sat down with Mark, our Director of Commercial and Hospitality Design, to learn more about the amenity trends that are up and coming, and how he stays ahead of the game when it comes to design. Here are five aspects Mark utilizes to impact student housing amenities:
1. REDEFINING WALLS
Copyright 2017 Ball Nogues
Student housing is ever-changing, and the walls should be too. It’s the idea of flexibility and transparency allows the architecture to adapt over time. A wall doesn’t need to be just a straight and true wall locked down to one use, but might rather be playful and expressive of the interior style or of the exterior landscape. A partition can serve much more purpose than simply separating rooms, but also affect sound, light, color and form. Utilizing roll-up doors, horizontal bi-folds, walls that turn or can “disappear” to create transparency to the outdoors are some ways to make sure the space is as flexible as a student’s lifestyle is. The walls can be used to physically hang things up for collaboration or as a projection screen for a movie night or gaming marathon. A wall can also create architecture as art and engage the residents’ as a new and creative form.
2. COLLABORATION IS ALL THE RAGE
Copyright 2017 Andrew Rankin
While the standard quiet ‘study’ space is crucial to student housing, creating spaces that allow for gathering, meeting and collaboration is critical in student housing. Oftentimes, students work alongside each other and their professors and the space they live in must be accommodating to this work style. Utilizing furnishings that are functional with USB plugins, yet mobile, will help bring flexibility to the space. Modular furniture that can be moved into a large group for collaboration, separated into smaller or individual configurations, or stored out of the way is ideal to make a space accommodating to a variety of uses. Providing ‘maker’ spaces can elementally provide a creative outlet and at the same time become a help-meet in relation to educational engagement.
3. ENHANCING THE SWEAT LIFESTYLE
Fitness and exercise rooms don’t need to be a room full of equipment anymore. These spaces can be adapted for individual or group workout sessions with the right design. By employing mobile furnishings, they can be easily stored away to make space for the active lifestyle at any time. Consider new avenues of fitness, such as, urban CrossFit, parkour, areal yoga or outdoor activities such as rope courses, slack line areas and bouldering landscape features. Structural lawns can be a place to engage groups for yoga, tai chi or Pilates in a fresh environment.
4. HELLO GEN Z
We’re no longer designing student housing for millennials. Researching and understanding Generation Z’s and the next generation Alpha is critical to mastering cutting-edge student housing trends. They are growing up with smartphones in their hands, and they will know and understand things beyond the reach of many, putting them in a completely different realm of digital engagement. The goal is to create a space that capitalizes on the energizing and engaging students where they will live and thrive. Understanding a generation that has proven to have a strong work ethic balanced with a larger concern for the community is tantamount to designing a creative community that they can call home.
5. LIFE IN COLOR
Copyright 2014 Habjan Design
Color, or the lack of, has been proven to have a profound effect on how a space is used and perceived. With the criterion that student housing is more than just a place to sleep and party, while not in class, we should not miss an opportunity to visually capture the ethos of the locality and spirit of the university. The concept of ownership by the resident can be strengthened through use of art and style which bespeaks local artists and embraces a story that the design is based on. Color and architectural graphics can be both a driving force as well as a calming cogency.
At BSB Design, we strive to stay ahead of the curve, not only in student housing, but in every sector of our expertise. Want to know more? Spend some time on our expertise page on the website.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Market Leader - Hospitality and Commercial - Charlotte
Mark is known for his innovative approaches to design and unwavering demand for technical excellence in the delivery and follow-through of project communication.