Berea Townhouses, the currently vacant apartment-style residence hall located on the corner of Seminary and East Bridge streets, is scheduled for renovation in June.   

The renovation will allow Baldwin Wallace to reopen its apartments to juniors and seniors. Plans include upgrades to apartment kitchens and bathrooms as well as new flooring and furniture.   

Kristin Brewer, assistant director for the Office of Residence Life, shared her enthusiasm about the upcoming renovation.  

“We are really excited about this renovation, our second in only a few years,” Brewer said.  

The renovations are expected to finish by Fall 2024, just in time for the new academic year.  

“Berea Townhouses sits in a unique, prime location right next to Coe Lake,” Brewer said. “This renovation will only add to its appeal, making it one of the most desirable places to live on campus.”  

The townhouses were first built in 1944 and were used as an apartment-style living space for BW students until the Covid-19 pandemic in March of 2020. From then until May 2022, the Townhouses were utilized as an isolation space for students that tested positive for the virus. It has been nearly a year since students have been able to step foot in this building.  

Many students that lived in the Townhouses while it was offered as a residence alternative have since graduated, but senior psychology major Christina Vitakis still has memories of the building. Before the pandemic, she stayed in the Berea Townhouses on multiple occasions to cat sit for a sorority sister.  

“It was such a cool way to feel independent while also still being connected to campus,” Vitakis said. “I can see why upperclassmen loved living there.”  

 Ella Chandler, a first-year early childhood and special education major currently residing in a Heritage Hall dorm room along with many other first-year students, said she was looking forward to eventually moving up to apartment-style living.  

“I’m looking forward to the renovation being done so I can live there my junior or senior year,” Chandler said.