AUGUSTA -- Campus housing for University of Maine at Augusta students could lead to a livelier campus community while helping a substantial portion of the student body cut commuting costs, UMA students said this week.

Students and staff members interviewed on Thursday appeared to welcome news that student housing is in the offing for UMA.

Speaking at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast on Wednesday, the college's president, Allyson Hughes Handley, said UMA plans eventually to provide some form of housing for students. Student residences would be a first for the university founded in 1965.

UMA students are often hard pressed to find suitable housing in the Augusta area, said Sheyenne York, a public administration student from South China. Many are left with long and costly commutes, he said.

"I think it would help a lot of students," said York, 21. "Commuting here from South China is expensive. Most students really need more affordable housing."

English student Adriana Love saw the prospect of campus housing as good news for UMA.

"I think it would bring in students that would not necessarily come here," said Love, 18, of South China.

The university appeals largely to adult students who attend classes while working full- or part-time, while traditional college-age students represent approximately 30 percent of the university's 5,000-student enrollment.

"A lot of students would like the opportunity to be on campus more," said Natasha Moiseenko, 31, a legal technology student from Augusta. "It would have more of a college feel."

In preliminary discussions, college officials have suggested either building residential halls on the Augusta campus or refurbishing property in downtown Augusta for student apartments. Discussions about housing options at UMA's Bangor campus are also under way.

While city officials in Augusta have held out hope that UMA could play a role in a downtown revitalization effort, social sciences student Martin Campbell said he would prefer that student housing be located on UMA's campus off Civic Center Drive.

"I think it would cause a lot of problems," Campbell, 21, of Whitefield, said of housing students downtown.

Student residences are a logical next step for a college that has turned its focus in recent years to four-year bachelor's degree programs rather than two-year associate's level programs, said Jon Henry, UMA's dean of enrollment services.

"I was on the job here a week before I asked, 'When are we going to talk about residence halls?'" Henry said.

Residence halls could offer UMA a competitive advantage, he said, or at least improve the college's ability to compete with other universities for full-time students recently graduated from high school.

"It's an exciting opportunity to take this university to another place," Henry said.

But erecting student housing on a campus that has always served commuting students would also pose challenges.

The campus would have to function 24 hours a day, seven days a week, not only during class hours, Henry said.

UMA would have to hire new staff to provide security, maintenance, meals and other services.

"When you take that on, you take on a certain risk," he said.

UMA officials must also contend with the cost of construction at a time when funds are scarce.

The college, however, is not likely to have a building proposal ready for the coming budget cycle, when Gov. John Baldacci is asking every state agency -- including the state's university system -- to trim 10 percent from budget requests.

In addition, securing financing now amid a nearly dried-up credit market could prove difficult.

"It's the conversational and deep contemplative stage," Henry said, explaining that construction is not yet imminent.

For students who qualify for financial aid, Henry said, living in student housing would not boost attendance costs. The college would simply redirect financial aid now intended to help students pay for off-campus housing to costs for on-campus living.

Matthew Stone -- 623-3811, Ext. 435

mstone@centralmaine.com