Updated: May 19, 2019 at 4:42 p.m.

The Board of Trustees unanimously approved renovations to Thurston Hall at a meeting Friday.

The project, which officials estimate will cost $80 million, will include an atrium, a penthouse community space with views of the city and food options for students, according to a University release. The renovated building will accommodate about 825 students in double and single rooms, the release states.

University President Thomas LeBlanc said at the board meeting Friday that the plan will make Thurston a “point of pride for the University” because the hall’s new community spaces will foster a sense of belonging among students.

“I’m very excited about the Thurston Hall project, which is in some ways perhaps the largest and most visible effort within the student experience,” he said.

Officials will file a plan with the D.C. zoning commission to house second- and third-year students in off-campus locations – like Aston Hall and One Washington Circle – while renovations occur this summer. LeBlanc said students could move into the renovated hall as early as fall of 2021 and no later than fall of 2022.

The board’s approval comes three months after officials decided to pause plans to build a new first-year residence hall and instead accelerate construction on Thurston Hall.