Colorado Mesa University (CMU) expects their new Wingate Apartments to be fully completed by Nov. of this fall. The co-ed apartments will house 140 second-year and above students. 

“We’re regularly briefed at our board meetings about the really tight housing situation in Grand Junction,” Chair of the Board of Trustees Alison Griffin said. “So, one of the things that we’ve been involved with is considering, with respect to the Wingate apartments, what are the broader campus needs?”

The complex will feature three and four single-bedroom options with a furnished living area and kitchenette, including a fridge, microwave and cabinet space. 

Additionally, the Wingate Apartments will have larger community kitchens, XL-single sized beds, study rooms and free laundry rooms on each floor. 

Because construction will not be finished at the start of the fall semester, prospective residents will start the year in another residence hall and apply shortly after to be transferred over to the new complex.

Originally, Residence Life planned for students to be able to apply for the Wingate Apartments for the fall application back in March, but tweaked the application timetable to better align with the on-ground construction. 

“We will open an application at the end of Sept. or early Oct. Residents will be notified of the details via email and publicly within the halls. Current, non-apartment residents’ applications will open one hour before the current apartment style applicants. This provides an opportunity for students who weren’t able to move into an apartment in August with an increased chance of securing an apartment. Students will have the option to create roommate groups and select their room assignment,” Director of Residence Life Emily Bollinger said. 

This is an important decision, as students who live in a non-apartment style dormitory, like Tolman Hall for example, will likely see the one-hour application priority as a better opportunity to stay on campus while still enjoying the perks of apartment-living. 

In fact, according to the Oregon Institute of Technology, students who live on campus have shown higher GPAs and are more likely to complete college. This is also critical to providing students with easier access to housing in order to succeed academically.

“[Among other priorities] for the board right now, it is our goal, given the tight housing market, to get students access to housing as quickly, as efficiently and as safely as possible,” Griffin said.