If it comes to fruition, the project could include a mix of housing, retail and dining options
LAWRENCE -- Rider University may be taking a page from neighboring College of New Jersey, whose new $120 million mixed-use development is becoming a destination for students and residents alike.
Rider President Gregory Dell'Omo said in his inaugural address Friday that the university is exploring land development projects at the front and back of its 280-acre Lawrence campus.
"The goal is to create a campus-town environment that will feature a combination of retail, dining and housing options, which can be enjoyed by not only the Rider community, but our neighbors and visitors to campus as well," he said.
Universities and colleges across the country are increasingly turning to developers to help them build and manage mixed-use projects that can provide more housing, but also add retail and restaurant space.
The school now has 2,500 beds on both of its campuses, 2,275 of which were filled last semester.
Michael Reca, associate vice president for facilities and auxiliary services, said the idea has been discussed as part of the master plan and officials are now in the information-gathering stage. They're looking at what's been done at other schools -- large, small and mid-size -- and familiarizing themselves with the players and process.
"We're trying to put together a plan of some kind," Reca said. "We'll see where that takes us."
Rider doesn't have to look far for an example.
TCNJ's Campus Town, a public-private partnership between the college and The PRC Group, opened this school year with upscale student housing on the upper floors and ground-level retail. A second phase opening this summer will add another 166 beds, bringing the total to 612.
Rider spokeswoman Kristine Brown said academics is still a deciding factor for prospective students, but nowadays they want more.
"Students want the whole package," she said. "They want a great atmosphere and they want access to these types of things that they're used to. ... Something like this would bring different options to campus for our students and others."
The university's games and performing arts events are open to the public, but she added that the retail could become another draw.
"It could bring more of the township to the campus," Reca said, adding that the two already share a strong partnership. "It could do a lot for the both of us."
Greg Lentine, PRC's director of university campus development, said the mixed-use projects help colleges differentiate themselves.
"Top schools will always get their share of students, but for the smaller schools -- private or even state -- this can actually help them get students not only to apply, but to go there when they're accepted," he said. "This adds a dynamic to a college that just doesn't exist."
During TCNJ's Accepted Students Day on Saturday, nearly 100 prospective freshmen toured the apartments, he said.
A benefit of having the project privately funded, built and managed is that it means developers take the financial risk rather than the university, Lentine said.
"That allows the college to take money that they normally would have had to use to build and manage housing and put it toward academic space," he said. "They can focus on their primary job, which is educating students."
The partnership, he said, not only frees up capital, but it also provides the school with an added revenue stream. PRC will lease Campus Town for 50 years before it reverts to the college and will pay about $50 million in rent over the life of the lease.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @CristinaRojasTT. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.