Lambda Chi Alpha House Nearing Completion

     After nearly one year without a place to call home, Lambda Chi Alpha will soon have the newest residence on Greek row. 

     Last year, Lambda Chi Alpha made the decision to demolish their house due to concerns about the foundation. As a result, members were forced to find housing elsewhere for the entirety of the 2023-2024 school year.

     “We found that it would have been more economically sound for us to build an entirely new house than keep making renovations to the old one,” said Griffin Petersen, external vice-president of Lambda Chi Alpha.

     The new price comes with a hefty price tag of $3.5 million. “All of [it] has pretty much been covered by our fundraising efforts that we’ve done with our alumni base,” Petersen said.

     According to Kelli Susemihl, Assistant Director for Sorority and Fraternity Life, USD does not have any input over the construction of fraternity houses.

     “They communicate [their plans] with the university, but they’re really on their own to do a bulk of that fundraising,” Susemihl said.

     Petersen also told The Volante they expect members to be living in the new house come fall semester. 

     “It’s just a matter of getting the landscaping and the rest of the brick and the sheetrock,” Petersen said. 

     “We’re hoping to have it done by mid-July so that people will be able to move in by fall.

     The new house, although similar in design to its predecessor, will have some new changes.

     “It’s going to be two levels instead of three, but it’s going to have a lot more communal living space,” Petersen said.

     In total, the new facility will have 23 bedrooms. Currently, each member will have their own room, but the organization hopes a new house will attract members this fall.

      “We’re hoping it will be a very big selling point for our upcoming fall rush class,” Petersen said.

     Susemihl also thinks the new house will have a big impact on campus.

     “It can provide a financial benefit for the institution because they can have more space in the residence halls to admit more students,” Susemihl said.

     USD allows housing exemptions for second-year students who are members of sororities or fraternities.

     “They can live in an alternative location where we still have some level of oversight over them rather than a completely off-campus house or apartment,” Susemihl said.

     For those interested in fraternity life, Rush Week will be September 2-5.