00:01At 11 stories high and costing more than $850 million, Perth's first CBD university campus is cause for fanfare.
00:11Bringing with it a whole world of possibility and vibrancy and you've seen the incredible architecture of this place.
00:18Jointly funded by the state and federal governments and the university, ECU's city campus features one of the southern hemisphere's
00:25biggest indoor LED walls,
00:27a moot courtroom and eight public performance venues.
00:31Students just go, wow, and then they explore and they go, I didn't believe there could be anything quite as
00:38beautiful that was a place of education.
00:41Excitement and that buzz in the atmosphere, I can't wait.
00:44The government hopes it'll boost WA's economy.
00:47This campus is not only going to provide an opportunity for young people to study in the city, it's going
00:53to provide an opportunity for the city to come alive.
00:55The corridors here are already getting busy as university orientation gets underway, with eight and a half thousand staff and
01:02students expected to attend campus in semester one.
01:05More accommodation is being built nearby to cater to the swelling demand, including a more than 700 bed uni lodge
01:12facility and another 800 beds still yet to come online.
01:16ECU City campus is fueling more residential population. We've already seen a new student housing tower completed, more on the
01:27way.
01:27Despite an estimated 60% of students living at home, one property analyst says accommodation is still a weak point
01:34for universities.
01:35If you look at the number of students that are coming in to Perth and you look at the number
01:39of accommodation units that are provided, there's still a shortfall.
01:43Which means that the rental market's got to pick up some of the slack.
01:46ECU had a hiccup during construction when asbestos was found in 14 fire doors.
01:51But authorities say there is no ongoing safety risk and the doors are due to be replaced.
01:56For now, the city is looking more busy as inquiring minds flood into the heart of Perth.
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