New Student Housing on historic Painesville Square welcomes first residents in August 2023

Although only a block separates the campus from the heart of downtown Painesville, today’s LEC students have not made a habit of walking that block instead of getting into a car and heading west on route 20 to eat, shop, and relax. All that is officially changing with the redevelopment of the historic building that used to house Chase Bank and Lake National Bank.

On April 27, a ceremonial groundbreaking was held with representatives from the College and the City of Painesville, as well as property developers Renew Partners of Montville and JCI Contractors from Ashtabula. “The City is very excited about the project,” commented Doug Lewis, Painesville City Manager. The city has planned $1 million to fund streetscape improvements around the property as a welcome to downtown’s newest residents.

Opening August 23, this $17 million project preserves the building’s historic exterior and stylishly re-designs the mid-century modern interior into suites of private rooms for more than 170 LEC students. Suites range from single bed studios to five-bedroom apartments with shared living, kitchens and bathrooms. Each resident will enjoy amenities including a 2nd-floor state-of-the-art student fitness center, yoga space, and a 4th-floor roof deck overlooking the square. Plans for a full-service restaurant and convenience store are in the works. There are reserved parking spaces and Laketran will run a free shuttle to the campus.

The property will be listed as LEC Housing on the website and will be part of the student housing selection process. Resident Assistants will be assigned and the building will have around the clock security similar to the College’s on-campus residence halls.