The UW campus will see some big changes with the expansion of the residence halls during the next 12 years, and the Housing and Food Services administration is changing right along with it.

The former director of HFS, Paul Brown, has been transferred to oversee the residence hall expansion with the Capital Projects Office.

“This is a huge project [costing] $850 million,” Brown said. “I have the opportunity to make all that happen.”

Deborah Costar, assistant to the vice president of student affairs, is now the interim HFS director. Vice Provost of Student Life Eric Godfrey will begin a national search for a permanent director sometime in the near future.

Meanwhile, Brown insists that the residence hall expansion will benefit students more than his work with HFS.

“By working with Capital Projects it helps me to oversee more detail,” he said. “In a way I’m still working with HFS because my job is to provide all this new housing.”

The Capital Projects Office’s multi-million dollar proposal will house more than 3,000 students in West campus by 2011. Brown said the project has an aggressive timeline, with eight new buildings and massive renovations occurring until 2020.

“This is a unique and important opportunity to try a new model for capital construction, one that actually embeds an operational expert — in this case Paul — in the Capital Projects Office to bring expertise from having managed residential facilities,” Godfrey said. “We think this new approach will bring new efficiencies to the project and lower costs of building the new student residencies.”

However, the proposed residence hall expansion will increase student housing fees by 2 percent annually for the next 30 years, according to The Seattle Times. This will go into effect in the fall of 2008 which means students who may not even be here to experience the benefits of the housing expansion, will be paying for it.

Some students have voiced complaints that the residence hall food plan is already too expensive.

“HFS leadership is aware of the issues students have raised, and they are committed to working directly with our students to resolve them,” Godfrey said. “At least two meetings with RAs have taken place to begin to sort out and resolve their concerns.”

UW now houses 5,100 students in a space designed for 4,500, according to The Seattle Times. With this project, temporary housing and double rooms made into triples will be a thing of the past.

Costar said she is honored to be taking on Brown’s position and is confident that with 20 years of experience working for HFS, she will be able to make the transition as smooth as possible for the University.

“I plan to leave lines of communication open,” she said. “I will continue implementing the programs that have been started to prepare for when the permanent director comes along.”

Brown is confident that HFS will continue to function as it has under his leadership.

“The department is in great hands,” he said.