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BROADBAND COMMUNITIES
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www.broadbandcommunities.com
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MARCH/APRIL 2015
PROPERTY OF THE MONTH
UP at Metroplex:
'New Benchmark for
Student Housing'
In this issue, BroadBand Communities showcases UP at
Metroplex, a student-housing complex in Vestal, N.Y. As
part of an overall renovation, Newman Development
Group, the property owner, installed state-of-the-art
wired and 802.11ac wireless broadband infrastructure
that will meet student needs well into the future. Thanks
to Jerry Wojenski of Newman Development Group and
Andrew Marshall of Campus Technologies for providing
the information for this profle.
By Masha Zager / Broadband Communities
B
ack in the early heyday of student housing,
the Newman Development Group (NDG)
developed a student-housing project in its
hometown of Vestal, N.Y. Te housing was intended
to serve students at Binghamton University, part of
the SUNY system. NDG partnered with the property
manager, Ambling Management Group, and the owner,
Binghamton University Foundation, to build the four-
building complex, then called University Plaza.
Te property was advanced for its time – it was
completed in 2004 and opened in 2005 – and was
popular with students. A decade later, however, it no
longer looked so advanced. Te clubhouse was small,
the amenities were unimpressive, the furniture and
appliances showed signs of wear and, most important,
the broadband was not up to par.
A cable company provided Internet, video and phone
services to the property, and there was no propertywide
Wi-Fi service. Cable modems hung
from the walls of the units. Tere were
continual problems with connectivity
and reliability. "Students can live
without a lot," says Jerry Wojenski,
executive vice president of NDG
Student Living, "but they can't live
without Internet service."
Students are avid movie watchers
and gamers, and they increasingly
rely on broadband for coursework.
Wojenski explains, "Binghamton tries
to get its students to graduate on time,
and it maximizes the experience by
keeping class time dedicated to lectures
and hands-on research. After hours,
the students complete their coursework
through Blackboard [a learning