The University is looking to add a hotel to the already busy intersection of Fortin Rd. and Upper College Rd. | Photo by Anna
The University of Rhode Island is considering the addition of a hotel to Upper College Road at the top of campus, according to a URI administrator.
“I think what we’re trying to do is to provide more space, that I’m going to call, ‘a third place,’” Abigail Rider, vice president of the Division of Administration and Finance said. “If you think about it, students spend a lot of time in their residence halls, in classes and in the library. We don’t have as many ‘third places’ on campus, somewhere to go on a break to think [about] something beside your studies. In my mind, I think what we’re trying to create is that third place.”
One of the things that the University is also trying to address are the visitors that come on a regular basis, both in the summer as well as in the winter. There currently is not a place closeby for them to stay.
The property that the University owns near the junction of Fortin Road and Upper College Road, which located on the corner near the Adams House and opposite Washburn hall, is considered to be an ideal spot for a prospective boutique hotel.
“Not too much, just about a hundred rooms,” Rider said. “That would provide [a place], certainly during our big weekends, like family weekend, alumni weekend. It would also provide a place for the constantly coming-and-going visitors.”
In addition, Rider also believes that the hotel could provide some more conference space since there are pretty limited available spaces on campus.
“We have a couple of large auditoriums,” Rider said. “But we don’t have too many places where you have an auditorium and a cluster of breakout rooms. It is a very, sort of, specific set up.”
The University is not going to be funding any of these projects directly. URI doesn’t want to take in any hotel risks due to its lack of experience in hotel management. However, the URI administration believes that the developer should be convinced that this project is a sound economic proposition in order to
“Our idea is that we will work with developers and they will own and operate the property,” Rider said. “We are hoping to find a hotel company, one of the names that build hotels, to build an architecturally attractive and appropriate hotel on this corner. We are very careful about our capital resources, and we like to spend them on things that directly influence the quality of education that the students are receiving.”
It is tentatively going to take two or three years for the completion of the hotel, provided that the University signs a contract with the developers sometime this year.
“As of how far we are along, last year, we had a what we’re calling an RFEI, request for qualifications and expressions of interest,” Rider said. “We did this for hotel developers and we’ve had reasonably good responses. We’re considering moving forward with one of the responders. We’re in the very early stage of that so that’s all I can say about that right now, but we are definitely moving forward with this hotel idea.”
There are mixed responses amongst students about the idea of bringing in a hotel at the top of campus.
“I like the idea of a hotel nearby,” junior Fehmina Hasan said. “But, I think it might be a little awkward for it to be right on top of campus and in between all the classes. Maybe if I know more about this space, and how it is going to look like, I can tell more.”