(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University’s Cascade Complex, an obsolete cluster of nine residence halls and a cafeteria that have been largely unused since 2013, is being demolished over the next three months to make room for the anticipated development of a senior living center on the five-acre site at the southwest corner of campus.

Staton Companies, a Eugene-based contractor, was awarded a contract to demolish the Cascade Complex following a competitive bidding process. The demolition portion of the job began last week and is being done for just under $1.7 million. That and all other aspects of the project – including abatement and disposal of asbestos and other hazardous materials, and preparation of the site for future use – are being covered by a $3.5 million allocation from the 2021 Oregon Legislature to responsibly raze the facility.

“The utility tunnels under the slab, and the basement under the old kitchen, will be filled with ground concrete generated on-site,” said Leon Crouch, SOU’s director of Facilities Management & Planning. “None of the demolished concrete will be hauled off-site, rather it will be used to fill utility tunnels and basement spaces to prep the site for future construction.”

The Cascade Complex was built in phases during the early 1960s, and was completed in 1967. Issues with the facility – including defunct HVAC and plumbing, leaky roofs, fire risks and other safety concerns – precluded updating or repurposing the complex as it neared the end of its expected 50-year life span.

The facility’s demolition will eliminate ongoing upkeep costs for the university, and also removes an estimated $12 million in “deferred maintenance” projects that would have been necessary to rehabilitate the complex’s failing infrastructure. Two of the Cascade residence hall wings had been condemned.

SOU and its contractors are taking precautions throughout the project to minimize impacts on surrounding neighborhoods and the university campus, including limiting the hours of the noisiest work and mitigating the production of dust. Care is also being taken to prevent erosion and control storm water drainage.

“Demolition was scheduled for winter months, purposely to allow winter rains to help with dust control,” Crouch said. “On days where there is no rain, the contractors will appropriately wet material as it’s being ground to control dust.”

The current demolition work is expected to be completed by the end of March, when other contractors and SOU staff are scheduled to begin a month-long process of site restoration. The goal will be a stable, drought-tolerant, easily-mowed field that’s ready for development.

SOU leaders have begun exploratory conversations with potential private partners for the creation of a senior living facility to be built at the Cascade Complex location. The senior living center is seen as an entrepreneurial opportunity to forge a unique synergy between its residents, SOU students, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at SOU and the university. The facility could be completed as early as fall 2027.

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