Housing registration for second-year and upper division housing is quickly approaching, with the on-campus lottery assignments releasing by March 20.
Grace Hall, the university’s oldest dorm option, has garnered quite the reputation over the years. Built in 1913 and renovated in 1987, the century-old building has housed thousands of Tommies over the years.
It has also seen a slew of changes to campus. The Lee and Penny Anderson Arena, just north of Grace, is the university’s most recent addition.
Construction of the new arena next to Grace negatively impacted many residents in the spring of 2024. In February 2024, students expressed frustration because the construction blocked entrances to the hall. They also said that they worried that construction could slow down emergency response personnel.
This frustration ultimately led to a petition requesting the university provide refunds on commuter parking passes and lower the cost of living on South Campus. The petition gained over 120 signatures.
In March of 2024, Grace’s heating system failed due to the nearby construction. As a result, residents went more than 24 hours without heat. Other building utilities were also impacted at times.
Since the arena’s grand opening in October 2025, exterior disruptions to Grace have calmed down. However, many students still view the residence building as a less desirable housing option.
“It’s definitely not as nice as some of the other buildings because it’s, like, a century-plus old,” said Charlie Mohr, a senior Grace resident.
Mohr also said that he was glad the university completed construction when it did because at the beginning of the academic year, he “had to walk around the entire perimeter of South Campus just to go anywhere.” Now that the arena is fully open, he said his commutes have shortened significantly.
Alex Morgan, sophomore Grace resident, said that while it’s not the greatest hall, living in Grace is “enjoyable.”
“I haven’t found any major issues with the living situation,” Morgan said.
While Morgan said noise from fans attending games is not an issue, “loading dock noises tend to wake me up a lot earlier than I want to.”
Notably, Grace is the only residence building on South Campus. In the summer of 2024, the university demolished Cretin Hall to make room for the new arena.
Sophomore Grace resident Fezile Mbonane said that living there is somewhat isolating because most of her friends live in buildings on the other side of campus.
Emelia Reynoso, a sophomore and Mbonane’s roommate, agreed that the distance from the rest of campus can be isolating but said that she is overall very happy in Grace.
“I love living in Grace. I like how quiet it is. And there aren’t that many people, so your neighbors aren’t yelling all the time,” Reynoso said.
Emily Kratz can be reached at krat1542@stthomas.edu.
