TUCSON, AZ (July 23, 2026) -- The University of Arizona and its development partners have broken ground on The Catalina, a nine-story, suite-style residence hall that will add more than 1,300 beds at the northwest corner of Speedway Boulevard and Campbell Avenue in Tucson.
The development is planned on approximately 3 acres, including the former Palm Shadows Apartments property and adjacent university-owned land. Completion is scheduled for fall 2028.
Previously released Arizona Board of Regents documents placed the project’s total development cost at up to $250 million, including approximately $145 million in direct construction costs.
Mortenson Development is leading the project, with Mortenson providing development, design and construction services. Gensler prepared the architectural renderings. The project also includes a dining hall, student programming space and support services intended to create a living-learning environment for first-year students.
Collegiate Housing Foundation will finance, own and operate the residence hall under a long-term ground lease with the university. Tax-exempt financing is being arranged in partnership with RBC Capital Markets and is expected to be repaid through residence-hall revenues, leaving the university without a direct debt obligation.
The Catalina will help accommodate the university’s new expectation that first-time, full-time freshmen live on campus beginning in fall 2026, subject to exemptions for students living within 30 miles of campus and those facing qualifying hardships or other circumstances.
University of Arizona President Suresh Garimella said students who live on campus for at least one year have a 50% higher four-year graduation rate than students who never live on campus.