Site chosen for UConn dorms in downtown Stamford

Developer Randy Salvatores project at 900 Washington Blvd. has been selected as the site of UConn’s Stamford dormitories. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2016. Developer Randy Salvatores project at 900 Washington Blvd. has been selected as the site of UConn’s Stamford dormitories. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2016. Photo: Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media Buy photo Photo: Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Site chosen for UConn dorms in downtown Stamford 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

STAMFORD — A long-awaited plan to provide housing for the University of Connecticut’s Stamford students is under way as a new downtown development a block away from the campus was selected over 10 other applicants.

Developer Randy Salvatore said Tuesday that UConn has signed a letter of intent to lease the residential portion of Rippowam Place, a mixed-use building under construction at 900 Washington Blvd., with expected completion by year end.

Salvatore submitted an application with the city on Friday to change the residential component of its previously approved development from high-end rental apartments to dormitories. If approvals are granted as expected, UConn would become the operator of the housing and students selected for on-campus housing may be able to move in for the fall 2017 semester.

“The location is halfway between the campus and the train station and we recognized that that would be really convenient for students,“ UConn spokeswoman Stephanie Reitz said Tuesday.

Student housing for UConn students in Stamford has been three years in the making and is part of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy‘s $1.5 billion initiative to expand digital and risk-management academic programs in the city — the third-largest in Connecticut — and remake the main Storrs campus into a leader in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. The so-called Next Generation fund for UConn‘s 10-year expansion plan approved by the Legislature in June 2013 allocates $10 million for Stamford.

Salvatore and his company, RMS Cos., are seeking to reduce the number of units that were originally planned for the Washington Boulevard site to 116 from 122 to accommodate UConn’s need for more two-bedroom dorm rooms.

“This is basically the same building that was already approved,” Salvatore said on Tuesday. “The general look and feel stays the same, we’re just making the tweaks required by UConn.”

The target occupancy for the building is 290 students, with a maximum capacity of 350. About a quarter of the bedrooms would be single occupancy, while the rest would house two students.

The Zoning Board in April approved new regulations for dorms in the downtown area that require housing be located within a half mile of campus, which each dwelling limited to four beds.

“This is the type of project that was intended for these requirements,” Salvatore said. “I’m not worried about getting approval.“

The proposal will go before the city’s Planning Board on June 14. UConn’s Board of Trustees will vote on the measure later this month.

The mayor’s chief of staff, Michael Pollard, said completion of UConn’s proposed dorms would bring Stamford up to the same level as other major cities in the state.

“Stamford is the only large city in the state that doesn’t have student housing,” he said. “The city has been looking forward to this for a long time, and we are anxiously awaiting the final outcome.”

UConn first sought proposals for campus housing in 2014. It was looking for plans that could house between 200 and 400 students. Salvatore’s development was chosen out of a pool of 11 applicants.

The university had previously considered the property at 59 Broad St., which now has a three-story building next to Target’s garage entrance.

UConn went back to the drawing board after it was discovered that the site did not meet the university’s needs.

“This will be great for Stamford,” Salvatore said. “Every great city has college dorms or student housing in its downtown.“

Sandy Goldstein, president of the Downtown Special Services District, said DSSD is thrilled to have a solid plan for UConn’s Stamford dorms.

“Having young people in the downtown is wonderful, and it’s even more wonderful when they go outside and walk around,” she said.

Goldstein is pleased with the location, a block from UConn’s Stamford campus, because it will encourage more student foot traffic in the city.

“These students will go to restaurants, go shopping; they bring a lot to the life of downtown,” she said.

nora.naughton@scni.com; twitter.com/noranaughton