About 25 students gathered Oct. 2 in Griffith Hall on the University City campus to discuss concerns over the recent sale of 15 UCity properties that were announced Sept. 12. 

Carly Robinson ’26, PharmD ’28, vice president of University Student Senate at the UCity campus, prompted the university to organize the forum to allow students to voice their concerns about how the property sales will affect their experience on the campus. Ross Radish, J.D., vice president of student life and dean of students, and Jill Dougherty Cleary ’00, Ed.D. ’23, vice president of administration and operations, gave presentations and answered questions.

During his presentation, Radish referred to the properties included in the sale as the “Loop Road Properties.” These include 4140 Woodland Ave., the Joseph W. England Library, the Wilson Student Center, Goodman Hall, Alumni Hall, the Science and Technology Center (STC), the Athletic/Recreation Center, Glasser Hall, Woodland Hall, the Integrated Professional Education Complex (IPEX) and the Living and Learning Commons (LLC). The university will lease back IPEX, Woodland Hall and Glasser Hall. The lease details are not being disclosed.

An official closing date for the legal transfer of property to the purchaser, the Belmont Neighborhood Educational Alliance, has also not been published.

St. Joe’s will retain ownership of Griffith Hall, Kline Hall, the Pharmacology and Toxicology Center, the McNeil Graduate Study and Research Center and Whitecar Hall, Cleary said. Rosenberger Hall, located across from Griffith Hall on a parcel of land that is part of Clark Park, is owned by the city of Philadelphia and is leased by the university, Cleary clarified to The Hawk.

At least three buildings that were once part of the University of Sciences campus have already been sold. Kevin Gfeller, associate director of public relations, referred The Hawk to a Sept. 5 Philadelphia Business Journal article for specifics. According to that article, Osol Hall, East Building and a parcel at 4238-40 Chester Ave. were sold.

The initial announcement raised questions among students about housing, parking, campus safety and long-term stability of programs at the UCity campus.  

Cleary confirmed the university plans to depart from the LLC by the summer of 2026.

The LLC currently houses 70 students, including both St. Joe’s students and students in the ELS program, and has the capacity for 416 residents. It is the only housing option for students at the UCity campus. Cleary told The Hawk there is no anticipated scenario in which students would be able to live in the LLC after 2026.

Kevin Vu ’24, PharmD ’28, one of the students who voiced concerns about housing at the forum, said it is frustrating to see dorms built on the Hawk Hill campus when buildings are being sold on the UCity campus. 

“I think if the university cannot maintain graduate housing at the LLC, I think they should be able to provide Hawk Hill campus dorms as a possible option for us graduate students to live in,” Vu said.

Another concern among students was the status of parking lots on campus. At the forum, Radish and Cleary confirmed that Breyer’s lot — the lot located between Goodman and the ARC — will remain open until the sale goes through, along with a parking lot next to IPEX. Radish said the university has recently towed vehicles in the lot without a St. Joe’s parking permit, citing unauthorized use of the lot by those outside the university community. The lot remains open for those with a St. Joe’s decal.  

Robinson said, in addition to worrying about lost academic buildings, students are concerned about overall safety. Radish and Cleary confirmed that the UCity Office of Public Safety and Security will continue patrolling the exterior of the sold buildings, excluding Osol Hall. 

Radish and Cleary informed students about planned amenities at the forum. This includes a recreation option where high-use exercise equipment has been moved from the ARC to Woodland Hall. 

Students also expressed concerns about dining options, as the Wilson Student Center, which housed the Wilson Dining Hall, closed at the end of the 2024-25 academic year. Cleary said there will be new vending machines in the IPEX, additional refrigeration and microwaves, as well as a coffee cafe in Woodland Hall set to open this semester.

Billy Scott ’25, DPT ’27, another UCity student, said he hoped the university would treat students on both campuses as equals and follow through on the promised amenities they have been assured. 

Drew Kramer ’26, a UCity student, said many students are also worried about how the sale will affect student life on the UCity campus. 

“Everyone needs to graduate and get their degrees and go to class and everything, but if there’s a lot of moving pieces at this time, it could get a little difficult for everyone to just kind of go throughout their day,” Kramer said.

Robinson said the forum created an opportunity for a direct conversation between students and administrators about the changes to the UCity campus. 

“It was really important for students and faculty to see each other face-to-face in order to ask these questions rather than doing it over email,” Robinson said. “It humanizes both sides, helps each other see each other’s perspectives and just understand a little bit more.”