What they say about real estate holds true for college dormitories: location is everything.

For the nearly 3,000 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee students who reside at Sandburg Hall, convenience is a way of life. The four-tower complex, situated on the north side of the campus at 3400 N. Maryland Ave., contains a coffee shop (Grind), convenience store, cafeteria, laundry facilities and a location across the street from the library and an easy jaunt to just about every important building on the compact campus.

Newly-opened RiverView Hall simply can't compete with that.

Or, can it?

RiverView, the sparkling $25 million dorm that opened in January at 2340 N. Commerce St., is about 1.5 miles from heart of campus. With a capacity of 488, the new facility features its own coffee shop, convenience store, laundry facilities, spectacular views of the Milwaukee River and three classrooms in the lower level.

On blustery winter days, some RiverView residents -- most of whom are freshmen -- can head to class without putting on a jacket.

"It's a living, learning community," said Scott Peak, UWM's director of university housing. "We're very excited about it."

Peak said that RiverView, which was slated to open last September before some construction delays pushed that back, has about 380 students and full-time staff in place and is sold out for next fall.

"You have to go through a bit of a paradigm shift," Peak said. "We have a 92-acre campus, and everything is compact. You can get anywhere you want to go really quickly. At many campuses, normal activity is really spread out. Students have to ride shuttle buses and use public transportation to get to different buildings."

RiverView students, as well as the upperclassmen and graduate students who reside at the Kenilworth Square complex to the east, take advantage of shuttle buses to get to campus.

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