Editor’s note: Authorized by state law, university policy prohibits members of the news media from entering residence halls without administrative permission and an assigned escort — even at the invitation of a student resident. To make arrangements, contact jaeasley@ucdavis.edu.

Resident advisor Connor Heinzman has enjoyed the tree-filled views from his fourth-floor room, walked through pristine hallways and checked out the still-quiet game room in the newest housing complex at the University of California, Davis.

“I’m so excited for the residents who get to live here,” said the sophomore from San Diego, who is majoring in biological sciences.

The $59.1 million Tercero 4 complex of three residence halls and a community building will be home, beginning this weekend, to about 605 students and is part of the most ambitious housing construction program in UC Davis history. The draft proposal for the campus 2017 Long Range Development Plan aims to increase student beds on campus from about 9,400 in 2015-16 to a total of 15,600 at full implementation.

Reflecting the university’s commitment to sustainability, the new complex is expected to be the seventh Student Housing and Dining Services project, and 28th overall across the university, to receive certification under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Program of the U.S. Green Building Council.

Heinzman and Selina Rubio of Chula Vista moved in early this month to participate in resident advisor training with approximately 140 other student staff.

“I’m looking forward to seeing where student residents are going to hang out,” said Rubio, a sophomore majoring in textiles and clothing.

Features of the halls

Each of the residential halls will house about 200 students in single, double and triple rooms. Each floor offers lounges and smaller gathering spaces with window seats. First floors include laundry facilities and study/meeting spaces.

Nestled among mature trees, the buildings are named for species found on the campus: Cottonwood Hall, Redwood Hall, Madrone Hall and Olive Hall, the single-story community building.

For the use of all Tercero area residents, Cottonwood features:

• a music room with sound attenuation and a piano for practicing music
• a wellness/meditation room
• a large recreation room with a television, game tables and three video-gaming stations

Olive includes a large main lounge with a community demonstration kitchen. With a nod to the past, its décor features a large sliding door made of redwood reclaimed from Leach Hall, a residence on the site that closed in 2014.

More about the residential complex and its sustainability features.

Future projects

In the next two years, the campus plans to open a new 500-seat dining hall, the second in the Tercero area, and a 400-bed residence hall to replace Webster Hall in the Cuarto area. Other housing projects planned for the near future would add about 200 two-bedroom apartments for students with families, 900 or more beds for single graduate students and 1,875 beds in apartments.

Housing and enrollment by the numbers

In all, about 5,900 students — including first-year and returning students as well as student staff — will complete the move into residence halls this weekend. Approximately 1,100 incoming transfer students will live in apartments master-leased by the campus housing unit, with roughly half of these students living off campus. An additional 3,700 students live in other housing on campus, including West Village.

The campus estimates it will enroll a total of 9,165 new freshmen and transfer students. Total enrollment, including around 2,000 students studying outside of Davis, is expected to be about 37,850 in the fall quarter. Classes start Sept. 27.