Ground breaking soon for $60M Fresno State student housing

Fresno State announced today that it will break ground on a new affordable student housing project , marking the first major housing initiative at the university in over 50 years.

Planning for the project has been underway for well over a year; The Business Journal reported on the project in May of last year.

The official announcement for the 80,000 square-foot, 228-bed, apartment-style project came Friday, with Fresno State President Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval praising the project, adding that it’s well overdue for the university to expand its on-campus housing options.

“With the construction of our last new student housing buildings 56 years ago, this project is long overdue,” Jiménez-Sandoval said.. “It’s important to recognize the unique challenges these students face on their path to obtaining a transformational college education. Providing affordable housing for student-parents is being intentional about student success.”

The project will aim to fill a need for the university, adding to its 1,100 existing dorm bed capacity currently on campus.

The project, which will be located at the corner of Cedar and Shaw avenues, will cost approximately $60 million; the funding comes from a state affordable student housing grant ($33.7 million) and approximately $20 million of funding through the California State University (CSU) system revenue bonds.

“We are excited for this new affordable housing building for Fresno State students,” said Erin Boele, director of Student Housing at Fresno State. “Students who live in the residence halls average a 3.1 grade point average and graduate sooner than those who live off campus.”

The project is slated for a summer 2026 completion and will require temporary parking changes for on-campus housed students, with parking lot P27 available for students living in the existing residence halls. Students parking in the lot will be required to display their resident parking pass on their dashboard to avoid tickets.