Washington University is gearing up to break ground this summer on a new South 40 residence hall that would house roughly 600 first and second year students and take the place of several existing buildings along Forsyth Boulevard. The plan is to consolidate most freshman and sophomore housing into this single complex and have it ready in time for the fall 2028 semester, even as the university keeps a tighter lid on other big construction projects.
What WashU Is Building
University officials say the residence hall is being designed for about 300 first years and 300 sophomores, supported by 18 resident advisors. The building will vary between three and five stories and wrap around a large internal courtyard, with a multipurpose room and other shared spaces meant to pull students out of their rooms and into common areas.
The layout mixes double rooms aimed at first year students with more single rooms for sophomores, plus community amenities that are supposed to make a dense, 600 bed complex feel less like a bunker and more like a neighborhood. Studio Ma and Trivers are on the design team, and Clayco is listed as the general contractor. University leaders say housing fees, not a separate fundraising campaign, will cover the cost of the project.
Size And Schedule
The project will total around 224,000 square feet, according to the St. Louis Business Journal, which also reported that WashU is aiming for students to move in by fall 2028. Construction is expected to start this summer if the schedule holds. The Business Journal described the concept as a single, large residence hall that will replace several older structures currently occupying the site.
Where It Will Go
Planning documents and university materials show the site running between the Stix House and the Underpass, in an area that now includes Blewett Hall, the Gaylord Music Library, Tietjens Hall, the Alumni House and a parking lot. The project would cover about five acres along Wallace Drive between Shepley Drive and Forsyth Boulevard, the Post-Dispatch reports.
WashU has submitted its plans to the city of Clayton, and the proposal is scheduled to go before both the Planning Commission and the Architectural Review Board. Those bodies will weigh in on how the project fits the surrounding neighborhood, from building massing to how students, cars and bikes move through the area.
Library Moves And Transitions
The new dorm footprint means a major shuffle for music resources on campus. WashU Libraries says the Gaylord Music Library will close at the end of finals in May 2026, with its collections shifting to Olin Library and West Campus as part of the transition, according to WashU Libraries. Vice Provost and University Librarian Mimi Calter acknowledged the tradeoff in the announcement, saying that while staff are “never happy about losing a library building,” they recognize the importance of the South 40 project.
Library staff say that access to digital resources and core services will continue during the move, so students and faculty should still be able to get what they need even as the physical space is packed up and redistributed.
Why Now
University officials say demand for South 40 housing has been consistently strong. About 95 percent of first and second year students request South 40 housing, while current capacity satisfies only about 90 percent of those requests. The new residence hall is pitched as the piece that closes that gap and lets the university keep more early undergrads clustered on the South 40.
Local reporting has also pointed out that WashU recently put some other capital projects on hold because of budget pressures. Administrators have framed this residence hall as a fee supported investment that can help stabilize campus finances over time, according to WashU Source.
Next Steps And Neighborhood Review
As the project moves into the approval phase, Clayton officials, university planners and nearby residents are expected to dig into design questions and traffic impacts. That includes a study of potential safety improvements at the intersection of Forsyth Boulevard and Wallace Drive, a key access point for the site.
If city approvals, site work and utility relocations stay on schedule, WashU’s timeline still points to construction starting this summer and students moving in for the 2028 to 2029 academic year. For South 40 regulars, that means a familiar stretch of Forsyth could look very different in just a few years.
