UW Madison: Living in the Lakeshore Neighbourhood

UW-Madison residence halls are divided into two main neighborhoods: Lakeshore and Southeast. Both of these areas are quite distinct from one another, being connected by the Lakeshore Path - a ribbon that ties together the entire Lakeshore Natural Preserve as well as serves as one of the many connections between Southeast and Lakeshore. The Lakeshore Neighborhood is nestled against the beautiful Lake Mendota, offering residents the most inexpensive lakefront property they will ever live on. The Southeast Neighborhood stands in the “southeast” area of campus, consisting of more high-rise buildings and less green space.

The lakeshore dorms are not for everyone. From experience, several freshmen unknowingly select lakeshore dorms to be their first preference and the aftermath goes two ways: Either they love it, or they end up moving. This is a comprehensive guide to everything an incoming UW-Madison freshman needs to know about Lakeshore.

The Lakeshore neighborhood is home to 13 residence halls as well as 4 dining markets. It features Four Lakes, one of the best dining markets on campus. Apart from the breathtaking lake views, it is also near the engineering campus, which is a major benefit for engineering majors who need to make it to those early morning labs in the Madison winter.

Some of the best Lakeshore dorms include Dejope Residence Hall which is one of University Housing's newest residence halls and is home to Four Lakes Dining Market. This building features carpeted resident rooms with air conditioning and walk-in closets. It also includes classroom space and on-site academic advising. Additionally, Waters Residence Hall is centrally located with convenient access to libraries, classes, etc. Residents of Waters have an in-house dining market (Liz's Market), beautiful outside seating facing the lake, and study spaces. Lakeshore dorms, unlike Southeast, are also known to offer single dorms in Residence Halls like Tripp,

UW-Madison has also recently introduced the newly constructed Bakke Recreation and Wellbeing Center that gives the Nic (the Southeast Athletic Facility) significant competition with spaces dedicated to supporting wellbeing services (for example: restorative studios, and rooms for massage therapy, and meditation). While the Lakeshore Dorms are often deemed to be antisocial and quiet, the Bakke has already started attracting a large crowd and therefore, increasing the social scene at Lakeshore.

As compared to the Southeast Dorms, Lakeshore's green spaces allow for more outdoor activities ranging from soccer fields to tennis courts. The Hilldale Shopping Centre is also nearby, increasing accessibility to clothing stores, grocery markets, and restaurants.

The one downside of living in Lakeshore is simply the distance it is from downtown Madison which is known to be more social, eventful, and popular among students. However, bus connectivity is very efficient with the 80 frequenting the many lakeshore stops often.

Overall, with the new Bakke Recreational Center, and improved bus connectivity, freshmen who enjoy living among nature and gravitate towards outdoor activities will thoroughly enjoy living in Lakeshore. However, it is important to note that those who prefer living in more busy, social areas with high-rise buildings would prefer Southeast.