The University of Hawai'i-Manoa will break ground on the 814-bed Frear Hall replacement next month, after the UH Board of Regents yesterday approved a $71 million construction contract.

By approving the contract at their monthly meeting, held at UH-Hilo, the regents have cleared the way for work to begin on the first phase of a plan to increase on-campus housing by 1,700 beds by 2014. The replacement Frear Hall is expected to open by fall 2008, said UH spokeswoman Carolyn Tanaka.

The contract allows for a maximum construction cost of $71 million, to be funded with $25 million in state general obligation bonds approved by the state Legislature in 2005. The Legislature also approved up to $46 million from a $100 million revenue bond to be used for university housing.

American Campus Communities was selected as the contractor for the project by the regents last year.

Students had initially complained that the dorms were not designed with students in mind and that the cost to live there would be so high that only the wealthiest students could afford it.

Students can expect to pay about $7,000 to $9,000 per year for the new dorm space, according to American Campus Communities. At present, dorm students pay $2,817 to $5,527 a year for housing, according to the UH-Manoa housing Web site.

UH has been short of dorm space in the face of soaring enrollment in recent years, and the replacement dorms are expected to help address the problem. Frear Hall, which was built in 1952 and had not housed students since 1997, was demolished in July. It was initially closed after severe plumbing and electrical problems developed and had deteriorated.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.