The High Bridge Lofts are projected to be available to Longwood students in August of 2017. The new off-campus housing, managed by Walk2Campus, will reside in the historic tobacco factory located on W. Third St. adjacent to the newly-purchased baseball stadium site.
The property is being renovated into housing in order to provide students with more off-campus options, according to Mychaela Stephens, leasing coordinator at Walk2Campus.
“We are redoing the old Southern States Building, we’re redoing that into loft apartments,” Stephens said. “It’s going to affect the students because it’ll give them more options once they hit their 48 credits hours to move off-campus.”
The decision was motivated by a desire for diversity in student housing options and to keep the old buildings aesthetically as they are, according to Stephens.
“It’s really to give students more options and preserve the community, keeping the building the way it was and it still matches with the downtown,” Stephens said. “It’s an old tobacco house, and we’re repurposing it.”
Stephens stated the big difference will be the setting of the housing, as the buildings are an older style and relatively preserved.
“The character will be the big difference. We’ve got the cookie-cutter, but these are going to be different,” Stephens said. “They have fourteen foot ceilings, nine foot windows. There’s nothing like that here.”
According to the Walk2Campus website, each floor plan includes hardwood oak flooring, 14 inch ceiling and nine inch windows, exposed historic brick walls, in-unit washers and dryer and modern kitchens including dishwashers and other appliances.
The pricing will be comparable to other off-campus and on-campus options, according to Stephens.
“The four bedrooms will be $4819 a semester per person, because we do our pricing comparable with Longwood,” Stephens said.
The 18 apartments will accommodate one, two, three and four bedroom apartments.
The offices of Walk2Campus will also move into the building, according to Stephens.
Additionally, the lofts will host a brewery on the lowest floor that is open to the public.
“We’re really excited what it’s going to bring the community, it’s going to have a brewery in the bottom too. So that’s going to be another point of interest for students, and it’s still within walking distance (of campus), and the whole reason we’re here,” said Stephens.
Follow the Rotunda for more updates.
