Following Tufts’ Sept. 12 announcement of plans to build an upperclassman-only dorm on Boston Avenue, the university has released new details about the project, which is set to be the largest residence hall in Tufts history. To be located at 401 Boston Avenue next to Dowling Hall, the building is planned to host 677 beds across multiple different unit layouts and feature retail store space on the bottom floor.
“The proposed project will include approximately 300 apartment units … with the predominant unit being 4-bedroom apartments, with two shared bathrooms, a full kitchen, and a living room,” Patrick Collins, Tufts’ executive director of media relations, wrote in a statement. “The unit mix will also include 1-bed studios, 2-bedroom, and 6-bedroom apartments to offer a range of configurations and price points for Tufts upper-division students.”
Tufts first announced plans to build a new dorm on Boston Avenue in December 2022. At the time, the university said it aimed to construct a residence hall that would host 398 juniors and seniors and open in fall 2025. However, those plans fell through.
“The University’s first announcements envisioned a different approach to the project, but changing market conditions made that approach no longer economically feasible,” Collins wrote.
The new dorm, now planned to open in fall 2027, will match Tufts’ efforts to create more on-campus beds in recent years.
“Over the past eight years, Tufts has added more than 700 beds through multiple projects that have expanded housing options on campus,” Christina Alch, director of residential life and learning, wrote in a statement. “This new housing will continue to meet the university’s goal by significantly increasing the number of juniors and seniors who are able to live in University sanctioned housing.”
Students at Tufts are not guaranteed on-campus housing beyond their sophomore year, meaning that upperclassmen face the choice of either entering the on-campus housing lottery or searching for an off-campus house. The house-hunting process can be strenuous for students, who often have little clarity on rates, timelines and how and where to search for houses.
First-year Max Kogan said he will “most likely live off campus” as an upperclassman, noting that the low chances of winning the lottery make it difficult to live on campus. Kogan, who might have a chance to live in the dorm come 2027, shared his thoughts on the project.
“I definitely like how there [are] going to be options for juniors and seniors for housing,” he said. “Increasing the amount of people that have on-campus housing is definitely a benefit, because having multiple options [means] you can decide for yourself, rather than just, ‘Oh, I guess I’m forced to live outside of campus.’”
The housing rates for the Boston Avenue dorm will be higher than the rates for older residence halls on campus, Collins said. According to Tufts’ Residential Life & Learning website, the upperclassmen housing rate is currently $11,960.
“The rates will need to be competitive with, or comparable to, the cost of living in off-campus housing in the Medford/Somerville area,” Collins wrote, pointing to inflationary pressures, construction and operating costs and interest rates.
For students considering living in the dorm, the university is “committed to making sure that all eligible students will be able to be part of this new residential community regardless of their financial means,” Tufts’ Executive Vice President Mike Howard wrote in the initial community announcement about the dorm last month.
The new dorm is partly an effort to alleviate the impact of student rentals on Medford and Somerville communities by housing upperclassmen who would otherwise live off campus. Through freeing up more units for Medford and Somerville residents, the university hopes to drive down rental rates for students and locals alike, Collins wrote.
“This has been something that the residents and the students have been asking for for a long period of time, so it’s nice to see follow-up on that,” Medford City Councilor Matt Leming said.
“With Medford, one issue that I ran into when canvassing is that residents, particularly in the Hillside area, would sometimes [complain] about undergraduate houses where there are parties on Friday nights. They generally didn't like that too much,” Leming added. “Simultaneously, I think that a lot of students at Tufts, would like to be able to have guaranteed on-campus housing during their duration there and not have to go hunting around Medford and Somerville for private housing.”
Leming expressed concern about residents being affected by disturbances caused by the construction project.
“As with any construction project of this scale, there will be some inconveniences during the construction phase, such as noise, occasional traffic impacts, and the need to use a few of the on-street parking spaces during the project’s construction phase,” Collins wrote. “The university and Capstone, the development team, will work to minimize these impacts to the community to the greatest extent possible.“
Tufts has partnered with Capstone Development Partners for the new dorm, a firm based in Alabama that specializes in student housing. In September, it completed a multi-use project at Florida Polytechnic University containing 430 beds, social media studios and office space.
According to Collins, Tufts and Capstone will hold meetings with local government officials and residents to solicit feedback about the new dorm project.
“We have already begun preliminary meetings with city officials and on Thursday held our first community meeting with neighbors. Ultimately, the project must be approved by Medford’s Community Development Board,” Collins wrote.
The Community Development Board consists of seven members — six mayoral appointees and one state appointee — and meets twice a month. Tufts has not formally filed the development proposal to the board yet.
Alch noted that the development plans for the new dorm are solidified and encouraged students to give their input.
“The development team will be seeking input from current students in surveys and focus groups, so I would encourage students to participate and provide feedback when possible,” she wrote.
