Akademiska Hus builds student accommodation in Luleå
Thursday, 1 March 2018
Akademiska Hus is investing approximately SEK 180 million to build 199 flats with room for 266 undergraduate and graduate students in the middle of the Luleå Campus. These centrally located residences will provide on-campus housing that will also contribute to a more attractive campus with increased vibrancy and security.
Akademiska Hus has worked in close collaboration with Luleå University of Technology (LTU) to identify the location where the new undergraduate and graduate student housing will be built. The building, which will be called “Polstjärnan”, will be centrally located on campus, adjacent to the pedestrian street Regnbågsallén and close to LTU’s activities, as well as communications and services. A total of 199 new flats will be built, including 132 one-bedroom flats of about 25 square-metres and 67 two-bedroom flats of 41–44 square metres.
“We know that demand for undergraduate and graduate student housing in the region is strong and we are therefore committed to creating more housing on campus. It is important for us and for Sweden as a nation of knowledge. Housing creates a more open and secure campus that becomes vibrant around the clock, something that we strive to achieve,” says Susanne Malmgren, head of student housing at Akademiska Hus.
Contributing to more student housing on and near campuses is a key issue for Akademiska Hus, since housing is a crucial factor of the future competitiveness of the centres of education. Since the end of 2014 Akademiska Hus’ mission has broadened to also allow construction, ownership and management of undergraduate and graduate student housing. Based on an inventory of the entire country, Akademiska Hus can participate in the production of 11,000 undergraduate and graduate student housing units by 2021. Between 2021 and 2026 Akademiska Hus can contribute to the creation of an additional 10,000 undergraduate and graduate student housing units. The company has not yet decided how many of these units it will be directly responsible for building.
“We are pleased that Akademiska Hus is taking this step to build on-campus housing. It is a key element for attracting undergraduate and graduate students to Luleå,” says Niklas Nordström, municipal councilman in Luleå.
Construction of the new undergraduate and graduate student housing in Luleå is planned to begin in the spring of 2018 with occupancy by late 2019 to early 2020. The zoning plan for the project came into legal force in February 2017. Akademiska Hus aims to have a third party rent the flats to the tenants.