Campus North at
The University of Chicago

Location
Hyde Park, Illinois

Owner
The University of Chicago

Team
Acoustics and A/V - Threshold
Architect - Studio Gang Architects

Size
400,000 square feet

Schedule
Completed 2016

The University of Chicago’s Campus North Residence Hall is a collection of four adjoined buildings expected to house approximately 800 undergraduate students. The Residence Hall is designed to continue the University’s tradition of College Houses where first through fourth year students live together, along with faculty members and graduate students who act as resident support staff. The residence hall extends beyond just living spaces to incorporate multi-level “house hubs” for gathering, a dining commons, retail spaces, offices, multi-purpose rooms, study rooms, and classrooms for a truly unique living experience. 

Because a residence hall is a 24-hour community where occupants work, eat, sleep, study, and play, attention to acoustic isolation is targeted where actively used spaces are in close proximity to sleeping or quiet spaces. The design is centered on providing acoustic privacy at dorms and apartments, while enhancing community and social activity with acoustically supportive materials and finishes in the public spaces. Also considered in the acoustic design is a series of new public green spaces, integrated into the complex to provide a serene, park-like environment, reminiscent of the quadrangle design of the original campus.