Lethbridge College’s new Kodiak House helps students hone their ‘away game.’
The views from the fifth-floor lounge are outstanding: the green Lethbridge College campus stretching to coulees, the Milk River Ridge and the Rockies. When Kodiak House, the college’s new residence, opened to students in September, it became a home away from home for 100-plus young people, most of whom are spending their first time away from the arms of mom and dad.
Ask Chris Eagan, the college’s director of Facilities Management, and he’ll tell you about the psychology of creating student residences that welcome, rather than simply house. Kodiak House, with its five-storey limit, variations in room configuration, landscaping and proximity to sweeping southern views, is such an accommodation.
“A 25-storey tower sends a message to a student that says ‘you’re not in Kansas anymore,’” says Eagan, who notes the college’s abundance of land allows for such development. “Kodiak House presents a small-town feel, one that is pleasing to students and, just as importantly, their parents.”
Lethbridge College was also cognizant of the need to fit into the surrounding community and the city. The residence presents no greater mass than any other college building and, when additional trees are added to the mix, will not overwhelm the eye.
The building features 109 single rooms, unlike the campus’s other two residence developments, made
up mostly of apartments for two, townhouses for four students, and family suites. Each room contains a grill, microwave, fridge and enough outlets to allow for other appliances.
The hallways are staggered to avoid long, empty passageways. Eight variations of window layout, three colour schemes and the ability of students to move beds and desks, allows for individuality.
“A student can feel this is their own space, rather than a cut-out of the other 108,” says Eagan.
Each of the four lower floors contains three accessible units with roll-in tubs in larger bathrooms, lowered kitchen cupboards, and sinks under which wheelchairs can easily move. They are unique on campus.
The building contains no air conditioning. Instead, it uses prevailing west winds to cool, along with concrete blocks that store heat and release it as the day cools. In winter, under-floor heating kicks in, adding physics to psychology, says Eagan.
“When your feet are warm, you feel warm all over,” he says. “You’re less likely to head for the thermostat.”
Eagan says the single-unit style will attract students who prefer to live alone, especially older learners. The student lounge will allow for socializing, and, as time progresses, students will have a say in the furnishings provided.
When the building is empty in summer, it will be rented out, as are other college residences. However, Eagan notes the college is not in competition with the city’s hotel/motel industry; the building will be used for major events, such as tournaments, once commercially available spaces are full.
