The first phase of Cal Poly’s $1 billion 10-year housing project will open in fall 2026, offering suite-style housing for freshmen and continuing students.
The new freshman housing will be nine-person suites with three triple rooms connected to a common area and two bathrooms. For continuing students, the housing will be six-person suites connected to a common area and two bathrooms.
Opening in fall 2026, Building A will have around 500 beds, according to the Cal Poly housing website. The 10-year plan is intended to add 3,500 to 4,000 new beds and renovate previous housing projects.
Incoming Cal Poly freshman Caroline Sieling said that the suite-style housing is appealing to her.
“I feel like the suite-style dorms definitely seem nice in the sense that you’re less on top of each other all the time. It feels more like a traditional housing environment, but it is definitely a little different than what you might expect going into college,” Sieling said.
Sieling does not have plans to join a panhellenic sorority, so she sees the housing as an opportunity to form more relationships that come naturally.
“It would be nice to have some people that are just close, and you’re forced to interact with to create some more natural relationships,” Sieling said.
Current freshman, Georgia Scherrer, spent her first year living in Poly Canyon Village apartments instead of traditional dorm living. Similarly to the new builds, PCV offers suite-style living. Scherrer said that although she enjoys living in PCV, she does feel a sense of isolation at times.
“Something that had surprised me was just how disconnected you are from everyone in your building. It wasn’t even that we’re disconnected from outside of campus; it’s more like ‘Wow, we don’t really know each other,’” Scherrer said.
Scherrer shared that it felt harder to make friends, in comparison to other freshmen who lived in the traditional dorms.
“I’ve definitely had to put myself out there way more than the people in the dorms have. They can just walk out of their rooms and everybody’s door is open, but in PCV, it’s not like that,” Scherrer said.
The best part of living in PCV for Scherrer is the individuality and privacy she receives. She said that living in PCV gave her the sense of independence she was expecting college to give her.
“I would say that even if you get frustrated with your living situation and the confinements of your living situation, don’t let that deter you from doing the things you want to do and from being the person you want to be,” Scherrer said.