Editor’s note: This page was updated at 5:56 p.m., Sept. 13, to accurately reflect the total number of beds being offered in the new apartment complexes.
Apartment-style living, walking distance to campus, easy access to restaurants and stores in Westwood Village plus the community feel of the residence halls. Welcome to the new apartments UCLA is opening for fall 2022.
With 2,300 beds for undergraduates at the Laurel, Palo Verde and Tipuana apartment buildings, along with more than 1,100 at the neighboring Gayley Heights complex, UCLA Housing is more than doubling its apartment inventory. And more importantly campus is now fulfilling its “4:2 guarantee” — four years of UCLA housing to any first-year student who wants it, or two years for any transfer student.
“We’re really excited that we can offer all of our undergraduate students the housing guarantee,” said Pete Angelis, assistant vice chancellor for housing and hospitality. “Offering affordable, quality housing right next to campus strengthens our residential community, gives students greater access to resources and provides an environment where they can thrive academically and socially.”
Last fall, the opening of Olympic and Centennial residence halls cleared UCLA’s housing waitlist by offering 1,800 new beds to undergraduate students. The buildings are also host to new campus-wide resources like the MakerSpace, a 3,000-square-foot lab with state-of-the-art equipment including laser cutters, 3D printers and an adjacent computer lab.
Speaking on the higher education podcast “Future U” this spring, Chancellor Gene Block emphasized that UCLA would always seek to provide a vibrant on-campus residential experience even as it expands access to a UCLA education to meet UC goals.
Bruins moving into either the Southwest Campus Apartments (Laurel, Palo Verde and Tipuana apartments) or Gayley Heights will find themselves at the center of a new residential community a stone’s throw from campus — complete with resident directors and staff, a calendar full of events and learning opportunities, plus study areas and multi-purpose rooms available in the Tipuana and Gayley Heights buildings, Angelis said.
With the addition of the four new towers this fall, the number of undergraduate students living in UCLA Housing will total approximately 19,000 residents. Of those students, all will continue to have access to diverse residential programming and events, and a strong sense of Bruin community, according to Melissa Faybik, communication and outreach manager in UCLA Housing.
The galleria on the first floor of Tipuana will also offer a large teaching kitchen to support weekly programming for in-person and remote cooking classes. Cameras built into the space will allow for all programming to be live-streamed to students in the Southwest Campus Apartments who wish to follow along from their own unit’s kitchen. Each apartment has a complete range and oven, ample counter space, an extra-large fridge and microwave.
Apartments in the Laurel, Palo Verde and Tipuana buildings are suite style, offering large communal spaces each furnished with a large dining table, a sofa and ottoman set along with other basic furnishings. Constructed in a modern industrial design, the buildings’ interiors feature a mixture of concrete and plastered walls, and exposed piping and ductwork to accent high ceilings.
Just across the street from campus is Gayley Heights, a large single-tower complex that includes a stylish indoor courtyard, fitness room, and plenty of recreation and study spaces.
The 17-story building will open its doors this week, offering a variety of unit types. The facility will also house residential life assistants and educators to oversee a robust calendar of programming and events.
On a recent tour of the space, Faybik was eager to show off the view from a west-facing apartment.
“We’re excited for residents of these buildings to enjoy the unique amenities, including many sweeping views of the surrounding area, and to turn these buildings into a great, new community!” she said.
