One of Western Kentucky University’s newest dormitories that’s been closed due to design and construction flaws will be demolished.
The $40 million Hilltopper Hall opened in 2018 and closed last year after it was determined that exterior masonry work on the building had shifted out of position.
WKU announced on Friday that Hilltopper Hall will permanently close and be razed after concluding that repairing the building isn’t feasible. As of early April, the plan was still to repair the dorm and reopen it in 2026. The future of the site will be determined later.
Meanwhile, the university also said Friday that it’s closing two other residence halls to make those structures more secure.
Regents Hall and Normal Hall will close for at least the 2025-2026 academic year. They opened just four years ago and are part of the first-year village at the south end of campus.
“We engaged an independent, nationally respected engineering firm to thoroughly evaluate the situation,” said Brad Howard, Chair of the Student Life Foundation, which owns the residence halls located on WKU’s campus. “Regents and Normal do not appear to share the same significant structural issues identified in Hilltopper Hall."
The engineering assessment found the two dorms didn’t meet all of Kentucky’s commercial occupancy standards. Some of the work that needs to be done before students can return include replacing the ceilings and installing bracing to make them more resistant to high winds and seismic activity.
The university says Regents and Normal don’t share the same flaws as Hilltopper Hall, but are not up fully up to code compliance.
The closure of those two dorms will affect about 1,000 students.
WKU says it has enough capacity to meet campus housing demands, but is finalizing a lease agreement with the Hyatt Place hotel adjacent to campus.
“Through the years, we’ve worked closely with the Student Life Foundation to address challenges as they have arisen,” said WKU President Timothy C. Caboni in a news release. “Our students and their well-being remain our shared top priority, and we’ve demonstrated in the past that we’re willing to make tough decisions if they’re in the best interest of our students.”
For additional information and updates, students and families are encouraged to visit www.wku.edu/housing/fall2025.
