After over 70 years residing on the corner of 23rd Street, Campbell Hall is officially set to be torn down. The Board of Regents passed UNI’s request to raze the building by unanimous vote at their first meeting of 2025 on January 15. For the past three years, the residence hall that used to house 583 students has sat dormant, with its future unclear and pumpkins growing in the courtyard. Now, UNI’s official plan is to turn Campbell Hall into green space after tearing the facility down.
According to Pete Moris, UNI’s director of public relations, Campbell Hall doesn’t possess a fire suppression system, is not ADA compliant and lacks a passenger elevator. “Currently, the building has $27 million worth of deferred maintenance,” said Moris. “With the demand for apartment style housing combined with these costly repairs, UNI has elected to purchase The Quarters facility and raze Campbell Hall.” UNI estimates that the razing of Campbell Hall would cost $3.8 million, and would be completely funded by UNI’s Housing and Dining department, with no general education funds being used for the raze. In combination with UNI’s purchase of The Quarters facility, the university hopes that tearing down Campbell Hall can extend the lifespan of housing on campus and provide financial benefits to the department as it sheds $27.1 million in deferred maintenance.
While Moris couldn’t confirm a specific timeline for the tear down of Campbell Hall, he did confirm that UNI Housing and Dining is in the process of receiving and reviewing bids for the razing contracts. When the raze eventually takes place, Moris confirmed that Campbell will be torn down over the summer, similar to West Gym. “Tear downs in the summer are less distracting to both students and faculty,” Moris said. Moris noted that another possible complication with the raze involved the utility hub that Campbell Hall sits on. This utility hub includes connections to electrical, steam and several other important utility connections to campus that the contractor will have to relocate.
As the university prepares to say goodbye to a fixture of campus, Moris notes how important and historic the building was. Named after UNI’s former Dean of Women, Sadie D. Campbell, who spent many years in the building, the university will look for another way to honor her, her work and her namesake after Campbell Hall is torn down. On top of the significance of Campbell Hall’s namesake are the alumni experiences and history within Campbell Hall. “The prevailing sentiment has been that there was always a great sense of camaraderie and community in Campbell Hall, and a lot of folks are sharing these memories,” said Moris.
As details continue to develop with regards to the timeline of the Campbell Hall raze, the Northern Iowan will continue to update this story as more specifics are released.
The Northern Iowan would love to hear from alumni who have stories and photographs of Campbell Hall. Please send your memories to [email protected] to contribute to our Campbell Hall remembrance series.
