Move-in 2016: What You Need to Know
Details on street closures, parking restrictions
Good news about this year’s Move-in: the Red Sox are out of town over Labor Day weekend, which should make navigating Kenmore Square considerably less painful.
Several BU offices, among them Housing, Dining, Parking & Transportation Services, Orientation, and the BU Police Department, have spent much of the summer planning and strategizing to make Move-in 2016 as easy as possible for students and their families.
This year, the University will house an estimated 11,496 students, up slightly from last year and the third largest number in history, says Marc Robillard, executive director for auxiliary services. (The record, set in 2010, is 11,558 students.)
Move-in began Monday, August 29, when the campus welcomed the estimated 750 freshmen and transfer students participating in this year’s First-Year Student Outreach Project (FYSOP), a Community Service Center program that brings new students to campus a week early to perform community service at sites across the Boston area. Others who arrived Monday were orientation leaders and athletes gearing up for the fall season, as well as continuing students moving out of campus summer housing and into fall quarters.
No move-in was scheduled for Tuesday, August 30, but Wednesday, August 31, was expected to be the single busiest day of the week, with 2,300 students moving in, including approved freshman and transfer students arriving for the first day of the final freshman Orientation session, along with upperclassman whose off-campus summer leases expired at the end of August.
An estimated 1,000 students were expected to show up Thursday, September 1, and also Friday, September 2, but Saturday, September 3, when the majority of freshmen are scheduled to move in, is projected to be very busy. The official move-in hours for new students are 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 3, and 9 a.m. to noon on Sunday, September 4. Continuing students can move in on Sunday, September 4, from noon to 5:30 p.m., and Monday, September 5, from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
On Saturday, September 3, and Sunday, September 4, resident assistants will be on hand to check students in and parking lot attendants will help direct traffic, while Scarlet Squad members (upperclassmen in red shirts) will be on hand to help freshmen and their families unload.
BU’s newest residence hall, at 1047 Commonwealth Avenue, opened Wednesday. Students moving in there this week will have metered spaces available in front of the building blocked off for unloading. After unloading, students and families should immediately move their vehicles to the Langsam Garage; the garage entrance is on Gardner Street. No parking is allowed in the alley next to the building.
A special Move-in weekend shuttle bus will run up and down Commonwealth Avenue on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., stopping at 13 locations between Kenmore Square and Agganis Arena. This is in addition to the regular BU Shuttle (BUS), which travels between the Charles River Campus and the Medical Campus.
This year’s Matriculation ceremony—the official welcoming event for the 3,566 members of the Class of 2020—is at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 4, at Agganis Arena, preceded by a procession up Commonwealth Avenue by members of the freshman class. The procession begins at 12:50 p.m. at Kilachand Hall, 91 Bay State Road. Freshmen residing on West Campus start their walk from West Campus Plaza at 1:15 p.m. and join with the rest of the procession at Buick Street. (Street closings during the procession are noted below.)
During Move-in week, the BU Police will reroute traffic at specific spots across campus, and officers will be on hand to direct drivers during the following changes:
Bay State Road (Beacon Street to Granby Street)
From Wednesday, August 31, through Monday, September 5, Bay State Road will be closed to through traffic from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Only residents, delivery trucks, and students moving in to BU will be allowed access.
700 Commonwealth Avenue (Warren Towers)
To keep the bicycle lane open, no vehicles are allowed to unload in front of Warren Towers. Access will be through the Warren Towers garage only, which is accessible off of Hinsdale Street. There will be limited parking for faculty and staff parking permit holders from Monday, August 29, through Sunday, September 4.
Commonwealth Avenue (West Campus)
Parking spaces on Commonwealth Avenue between Buick Street and Harry Agganis Way may be unavailable through Thursday, September 1, due to an ongoing Boston Water and Sewer Commission project.
South Campus
From Wednesday, August 31, through Monday, September 5, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Buswell Street will be converted to one-way, going west from Park Drive to St. Mary’s Street, and going east from Park Drive to Mountfort Street.
BU Bridge and University Road
On Sunday, September 4, the BU Bridge and University Road will be closed for a period of time between 1 and 2 p.m. to accommodate the thousands of freshmen proceeding from East Campus to Agganis Arena for Matriculation.
Harry Agganis Way and Buick Street
From Saturday, September 3, through Monday, September 5, Student Village residents moving into 33 Harry Agganis Way or 10 Buick Street will be directed to park in the Agganis Arena garage.
On Sunday, September 4, Harry Agganis Way and Buick Street will be closed from 1 to 3:30 p.m. for Matriculation. There will be no vehicle access for students moving into 33 Harry Agganis Way and 10 Buick Street during that time.
The Agganis Arena C-2 lot (the lower outdoor service lot) will be closed to faculty and staff parking permit holders Monday, August 29, through Sunday, September 4.
Babcock Street
On Saturday, September 3, and Sunday, September 4, West Campus students moving into Claflin, Sleeper, and Rich Halls will be directed to park in the Langsam Garage and outer lot; the garage entrance is on Gardner Street. Students moving into 1019 Commonwealth Avenue can park in the garage or in metered spaces.
The Langsam Garage and outer lot will have limited spaces for faculty and staff parking permit holders from Monday, August 29, through Sunday, September 4; the garage entrance is on Gardner Street.
Have a question about Move-in week? Leave it in the Comment section below and we’ll try to make sure it’s answered.
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