This article was underwritten in part by the Mickey Flacks Journalism Fund for Social Justice, a proud, innovative supporter of local news. To make a contribution go to sbcan.org/journalism_fund.
On Stadium Road, at the site of UC Santa Barbara’s future San Benito student housing complex, a crane stretches skyward surrounded by seven-story concrete structures that tower over the nearby UCSB Police Department. On campus, where UCSB’s oldest dorm, Santa Rosa Residence Hall, stood for more than 70 years until its demolition this June is a wide dirt field and construction site for the East Campus Student Housing Project.
Together, the two projects will create housing that provide more than 3,500 student beds, allowing the university to reach the housing goal it set in its 2010 Long Range Development Plan. It will also mean the university can guarantee two years of housing for incoming freshman and transfer students…