Everything You Need to Know About Pace’s Upperclassmen NYC Residence Halls
A guide to the confused upperclassman student deciding between living in 33 Beekman or 55 John Street.
With housing registration beginning April 4th, the hot topic on campus is where to live next year.
The University offers two contemporary residence halls for students entering their sophomore, junior, and senior years: 33 Beekman and 55 John Street.
While tours are offered of both 33 Beekman and 55 John Street for upperclassmen students, they are not promoted or advertised nearly as much as the freshman residence halls on campus.
As a freshman preparing to live on campus at Pace Unviersity, you are loaded with information regarding housing. The freshmen residance halls, 182 Broadway and Maria’s Tower, are explained in depth to incoming students.
By contrast, those seeking to live on campus after freshman year base their decisions to live in 33 Beekman or 55 John Street on rumors about the buildings. Some, even take a blind shot in the dark.
What are the upperclassmen dorms like? What does each building have to offer? What do your fellow peers think about living in 33 Beekman and 55 John Street?
Here is an indepth feature on both 33 Beekman and 55 John Street with everything you need to know in regard to choosing the perfect residance hall for you.
33 Beekman
Located on the corner of Beekman and William Street sits 33 Beekman, the tallest residance hall in the world.
33 Beekman is 34 stories high and is located a block south of the main campus building, One Pace Plaza.
Beekman consits of 761 beds and offers quads, doubles, and limited singles for upperclassmen students. Each dorm room includes a bathroom(toilet, sink and shower), a bed for each resident living in the room, and storage.
“There are so many students who live in the building,” shared Alexa Anastasio, community coordinator of 182 Broadway soon moving to community coordinator of 33 Beekman. “You have an opportunity to run into so many of your peers in the building you live in. It’s also only one block away from Pace, so it’s super easy to get to class on time.”
For students who prefer living closer to One Pace Plaza, Beekman may be a prime choice.
“I could literally wake up for a class 5 minutes before it started, and make it on time without being marked absent(not recommending, just saying),” shared Pace junior Jake Cameron. “The close distance to the campus was a positive.”
Beekman’s height and views also tend to be a common favorite.
“The views are amazing,” shared Pace sophomore Maggie Carucci, a current Beekman resident. “Waking up and seeing the Brooklyn Bridge everyday is amazing.”
But there is more to Beekman than just it’s pretty view and proximity to the main campus building.
On the second floor of Beekman, students are offered several lounges with amenities that serve many purposes. If students want a location to hang out with friends, or study for an upcoming test, there’s a lounge for all.
The second floor also offers a kitchen, with ovens, microwaves, and stovetops for students who enjoy cooking and baking(or just are tired of dining hall food).
But that’s not all the second floor has to offer.
There is also a gym, open 24 hours, available to all residents in the building.
The laundry room is located in the basement for Beekman, which is free for all residents. “There are so many more laundry machines at Beekman than Broadway and Maria’s,” shared Carucci. “I never have to wait or take people’s clothes out.”
While there are many positives to living in 33 Beekman, residents also have some concerns.
“I found the lack of being able to cook food in my dorm, except maybe ramen and popcorn to be a negative,” shared Cameron.
Both Cameron and Carucci also had similar beliefs on Beekman’s elevators. “The upper floor elevators are always in service or causing problems,” Carucci stated. “It’s annoying when trying to get somewhere and everyone is packed in one elevator.”
“The elevators are so rough,” Cameron added. “Especially when you are rushing in and out of the building.”
55 John Street
55 John Street is located just down the street from 182 Broadway and the South Street Seaport. It is also only a few blocks away from One Pace Plaza.
John Street houses 499 residents who live on floors 2 through 17.
John Street offers doubles and triples to upperclassmen students. Each room includes a bed, private bathroom(toilet, sink, and shower), storage, AND a flat screen TV.
“John Street has a very city vibe,” shared Anastasio. “It is a really cool building. You walk in and it gives you that sense of independence. If you’re an upperclassmen student looking to feel like you are living in an apartment, when you are really living in a residence hall, this is a great building for you.”
For students who want more privacy and space in their living environment, John Street may be a better option.
“I like that we are secluded in a way that Beekman isn’t,” shared Pace sophomore Sierra Adams. “The proximity of all the rooms is further apart than Beekman. So the privacy aspect is definitely there.”
John Street has also recieved new renovations this past year. According to Anastasio, every floor now has new furniture as well as updated flooring and bathrooms.
John Street is also known for it’s high ceilings and big windows.
“Even though the rooms aren’t that big the ceilings are so high,” commented Bridget DeSarlo, John Street resident. “That makes the room feel more spacious.”
John Street’s laundry room is located in the basement of the building, and unlike Beekman, charges a fifty-five dollar fee per semester for unlimited laundry use.
“Our laundry room likes to go up into flames,” shared Adams. “It’s really hot in there and nothing really works. Your clothes will be burnt, and they don’t even really dry.”
The lounges in John Street are very different from the lounges in Beekman.
“One of John Street’s lounges is located on the 18th floor,” shared Anastasio. “It is a sky lounge with a kitchen space where students spend time.”
There is also a lounge in the basement as well as a gym for all students.
In addition to these lounges, there is a lounge on the first floor lobby of the building. All lounges are open to students 24/7.
A postive to the first floor lobby lounge, Anastasio added, is it’s sense of providing community. When you walk in the building if there is an event going on you can just join right in.
But everything has it’s downsides.
“The lobby is fine,” Adams commented. “Although sometimes it feels like strangers can just walk in and sit there because you don’t have to swipe in to get there.”
What other concern’s were voiced by John Street’s residents?
DeSarlo shared, “The windows are so dirty that you can’t see out of them and it makes the room dark.”
So what’s the conclusion?
Both 33 Beekman and 55 John Street have a lot to offer for Pace students. It truly just comes down to personal preference toward living style and campus life.
“Both dorms are very similar,” Anastasio shared. “The only thing about Beekman is it will offer floors dedicated to the sophomore experience which John Street will not offer. These floors are meant for students to hold on to that strong sense of community that they may of had in their first year experience.”
33 Beekman: a slightly more social living environment that is closer to the main campus.
55 John Street: a slightly more private living environemnt that provides a sense of independence and city life.
Residence hall selection day begins April 4th, 2018.
May the odds ever be in your favor.