LMU continues to pursue its longstanding strategy of acquiring off-campus properties as part of its asset base to support key goals and objectives, primarily focused on solutions for affordable faculty housing. This year, the Board of Trustees revised its approach to the challenges associated with off-campus housing needs and to provide new opportunities for external engagement.
- Faculty Housing: To support the recruitment and retention of faculty, the university has recently acquired multiple properties for use as rentals. These new options will expand the university’s existing portfolio, which was previously limited to single-family residences. The university anticipates that some apartments will be move-in ready for fall 2023; the provost is in conversation with the faculty senate president and additional information about availability will be shared next spring.
- Crimson House: With the generous support of university trustees and regents, LMU will open a new off-campus presidential residence to support the president’s externally facing duties. Located about a mile and a half east of the LMU Westchester campus, the new residence will enhance high-level engagements and open new opportunities to host prospective donors, community members, civic leaders, and others who support the university’s mission. Like universities across the country, LMU will use Crimson House to develop more impactful philanthropic relationships that will benefit our strategic priorities, academic programs, and our students.
- Off-Campus Values: The university will continue to ensure that off-campus properties reflect the university community’s ethos and values, reflecting our national leadership in green innovation, including: the use of drought-tolerant landscaping and hardscaping; solar power generation; and other environmentally friendly solutions. For Crimson House, the university will also expand upon its past practice of featuring student and alumni art.
- New Resource for Off-Campus Properties: To manage the university’s real estate portfolio and to support the needs of our community more effectively, the university has retained Jeffrey Zychowski as LMU’s director of real estate and property management. Zychowski comes to LMU with a wealth of experience in this area and will support the needs of our off-campus property residents, tenants, and properties.
The university hopes that these actions can help address the challenging issue of housing affordability in the Los Angeles region and enable the university to attract and retain the best and the brightest to teach our students.