Seton Earth-Sheltered Apartments

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Historical Photos

Black and white photo of two modernist buildings with flat roofs and large windows, surrounded by open grass areas. The buildings are staggered and set against a backdrop of trees and a clear sky.
Seton Apartments, 1981
A modern, rectangular building with large windows and a concrete facade. It has a grassy lawn in the foreground and is set against a partly cloudy sky.
Seton Apartments, 2006

(click thumbnails for larger images) 

Architect: Hamel, Green and Abrahamson, Inc., Minneapolis; Ted Butler, project architect

Contractor: Gohman Construction

Dates:

In 1981, construction began for new upper classman housing at St. John’s. These apartments, which would be named the Seton Earth-Sheltered Apartments after Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, were built on north side of  Stumpf Watab (i.e. the dammed north fork of the Watab river). The new construction consisted of 20 apartments, to which could house a total of 80 students.

The unique design of these building was created maximize energy efficiency and reduce maintenance costs. The apartments are built into the ground, which keeps the outside temperature at a consistent 55° year-round. Additionally, the apartments were constructed facing south so that they would let in the afternoon sunlight, reducing the need to heat the buildings.

Each apartment is two levels and 1,000 square feet with an upstairs kitchen and living area and two bedrooms and a bathroom on the lower level.

These buildings were dedicated and blessed on October 8th, 1982.

Cosmetic updates were made to the Seton Earth Shelters in the summer of 2007, but climate control was a chronic problem. Plans were made to raze them in the summer of 2020 and replace them with new apartments, but the COVID-19 global pandemic, which precipitated the cancellation of the Fall 2020 Study Abroad programs (and thus the need for more student housing on campus), resulted in a reprieve for Seton. They were ultimately demolished in June 2021, and the new townhomes that replaced them opened for student occupancy in August 2022. They corrected the heating and cooling issues posed by the Seton Earth Shelters. Alongside the new Seton Townhomes, the Nicol Bridge was constructed across Lower Stumpf Lake in 2021, and both were blessed Oct. 14th, 2022.

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