Northwest Neighborhood Vision

A reinvigorated faculty, staff, and graduate student housing neighborhood, located northwest of the campus core and bordered by forest to the west, serves as an attractive residential community set apart from the core of campus. The neighborhood’s improved and expanded housing capacity serves to advance Alcorn’s faculty and researcher recruitment and retention goals.

Renovations to the existing Matt Thomas Apartments and the addition of new single-family and multifamily housing offer a variety of living options. Landscaped courtyards, shade trees, and recreation areas offer safe outdoor spaces. The rehabilitated Infirmary building serves as an amenity for the neighborhood with co-working, lounge, and social spaces.

The neighborhood is intentionally buffered from the nearby consolidated parking lot using trees and other landscape strategies. Improved sidewalks along the extended Infirmary Avenue bring increased visibility to the agriculture demonstration fields and link the neighborhood to the Library and the rest of the campus core.

Reactivated research spaces in the far north of campus along Research Drive support the University’s research mission and are convenient for the neighborhood’s residents.

Existing Buildings

New Construction, 10 Year

New Construction, Long-Term Campus Boundary County Line

Reactivate existing research facilities to support agricultural research

Attract faculty and staff with renovated apartments, new houses, and comfortable shared green spaces

Bring increased visibility to Alcorn’s Extension fields and community engagement

Utilize existing assets by re-envisioning the Infirmary as workspace and a community facility for faculty and staff

Historic ASU Drive

Utilize existing infrastructure and attract more research staff with the construction of additional apartments

Northwest Neighborhood—Today

Many of the facilities in the Northwest Neighborhood are in poor condition and require renovation or replacement.

Housing in this neighborhood consists of the Matt Thomas Apartments (multi-family) and Johnson Circle Faculty Houses (single-family). Renovation of the Matt Thomas Apartments is required to keep them functional and attractive.

A currently vacant former housing site at the northwest corner of Alcorn Avenue and Research Drive contains utility infrastructure that has the potential to be used to support new multi-family housing.

The currently vacant Infirmary building needs repairs and renovations, which could allow it to serve as an amenity space for faculty and staff.

The planned demolition of single-family housing along Residential Drive would allow construction of a consolidated parking lot and extension of ASU Drive to serve parking demand in the campus core.