WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Wichita State University will close Fairmount Towers residence hall in mid-August, in line with housing consultants’ recommendations and the university’s five-year capital budget plan.

About 300 students who had reserved space in Fairmount Towers for the 2017-18 academic year will be housed in a brand-new apartment complex, The Flats at WSU, at no additional cost to those students.

The Flats is located near the corner of Mike Oatman Drive and Innovation Boulevard, just south of Eck Stadium. It will open in early August.

Eric King, associate vice president for facilities, said: “Fairmount Towers, constructed 53 years ago as a private dormitory, has reached the end of its useful life. The building will be taken out of service and eventually demolished. Its site near the northwest corner of 21st and Hillside will be available for other university uses.”

King noted that a 2015 report from Brailsford & Dunlavey on the student housing market concluded Fairmount Towers should be phased out based on four main factors:

Operational inefficiencies

Limited student demand

Isolated location outside the core of campus

Facility condition concerns

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