Walk across the Blacksburg campus these days and you can't miss it. Hitt Hall Virginia Tech stands as a massive, 100,000-square-foot statement of intent. It isn't just another academic box. Honestly, it’s a bit of a beast. It anchors the North Campus Precinct, sitting right there at the edge of the Drillfield, basically screaming that the university is tired of the old way of teaching construction and dining. It’s big. It’s Hokie Stone-clad. And it’s changing how students actually live their day-to-day lives in the 24061 zip code.
You’ve probably seen the cranes. They’re gone now, but the impact remains.
The building is a weird, brilliant hybrid. It houses the Myers-Lawson School of Construction and a massive new dining hall. Usually, those two things don't go together. You don’t think "civil engineering" and "fresh stir-fry" in the same breath. But that’s the point. The university realized that the Perry Place dining area needed a home and the construction students needed a place where they could actually touch the stuff they’re learning about. It’s practical.
The Myers-Lawson School of Construction Finds a Real Home
For years, the Myers-Lawson School of Construction (MLSoC) felt a little scattered. Now, Hitt Hall Virginia Tech provides that centralized "hub" everyone keeps talking about. But forget the buzzwords. What does that actually mean? It means the Innovation Lab.
This isn't just a computer lab with fancy monitors. It’s a double-height space. High ceilings. Room to breathe. Students here aren't just looking at Bluebeam or Revit files on a screen; they are working with the physical reality of building science. It’s about the "built environment." That sounds fancy, but it basically means everything around us—the roads, the pipes, the walls. Dr. Brian Kleiner and the rest of the faculty have been pushing for a space that mirrors a real-world construction firm. This is it.
The building itself is a teaching tool. You’ll notice sections where the "guts" of the building are visible. It’s intentional. Why hide the HVAC and the structural steel when you’re teaching kids how to install HVAC and structural steel? It’s meta. It works.
Perry Place: The Dining Game-Changer
Let’s be real. Most people on campus care about the food. Hitt Hall Virginia Tech is home to Perry Place, which is essentially the new crown jewel of Virginia Tech Dining Services. If you’ve ever waited 20 minutes for a wrap at Dietrick or struggled to find a seat at West End during the lunch rush, you know why this matters.
Perry Place brings nine distinct dining venues under one roof. We’re talking about 600 seats. That is a massive amount of "throughput," as the administrators like to call it. But for a student, it just means you might actually get to eat between your 11:15 AM and your 12:20 PM.
- Smokehouse: Think slow-cooked meats. It’s heavy, it’s delicious, and it smells better than your dorm room.
- Fresh & Focused: For when you’ve had too much pizza and actually want a vegetable that hasn't been deep-fried.
- Global Grille: This is where the menu rotates. One day it’s one thing, the next it’s something else entirely. It keeps the boredom at bay.
The design of the dining area is also a departure. It’s open. It’s bright. It uses a lot of glass to look out over the campus, which makes the whole experience feel less like a basement cafeteria and more like a high-end food hall in Charlotte or D.C.
Why the Location Matters So Much
Hitt Hall Virginia Tech sits at a critical junction. It bridges the gap between the academic side of campus and the residential side. Before this, that corner of campus felt a little underdeveloped compared to the massive growth we saw near the Moss Arts Center. Now, it pulls gravity toward the North Precinct.
It’s also right near the Multi-Modal Transit Facility. Basically, if you’re taking the bus, you’re right there. The convenience factor is 10/10.
The Architecture of Hokie Stone
You can’t talk about a Virginia Tech building without talking about Hokie Stone. It’s the law. Or it feels like it. Hitt Hall uses it extensively, but it mixes it with modern glass and steel in a way that feels 2026, not 1920.
The architects (Hanbury, in collaboration with the university) had a tough job. They had to make a 100,000-square-foot building not look like a giant grey blob. By breaking up the massing—meaning the different shapes of the building—they made it feel more approachable. It’s got these vertical elements that mimic the gothic style of the older buildings but with much cleaner lines.
It’s expensive. Let's not sugarcoat it. The project cost was significant, backed by names like the Hitt family (hence the name) and the Myers and Lawson families. These are titans in the construction industry. Brett Hitt, Co-Chairman of HITT Contracting, didn't just write a check; the family's involvement represents a pipeline from Blacksburg to the major construction markets on the East Coast.
What Students Actually Think
If you talk to a senior in the building construction program, they’ll tell you the difference is night and day. Before Hitt Hall Virginia Tech, they were cramped. Now, they have the "Collaboration Hub." It’s a space designed for team projects. In the construction world, nobody works alone. You have the architect, the owner, the contractor, and the subs. This building forces students into those same collaborative patterns.
"Honestly, I just like that I don't have to walk across campus to get a decent lunch after lab," one junior told me. That’s the reality. It’s about quality of life.
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There are misconceptions, though. Some people think it’s only for construction students. Wrong. The dining hall is for everyone. The study spaces are for everyone. It’s a campus-wide resource that just happens to have some specialized labs in the back.
Practical Realities and Challenges
No building project is perfect. Building something this size in the middle of a functioning campus is a logistical nightmare. There were noise complaints. There were sidewalk closures. But now that it’s open, the "value add" is obvious.
One thing to keep an eye on is the tech integration. The building is packed with smart sensors and energy-efficient systems. Virginia Tech is aiming for LEED Silver certification (or higher). This means the building monitors its own energy use. For the researchers at the Myers-Lawson School, the building itself is a data set. They can study how the building breathes, how it heats up, and how people move through it.
Actionable Advice for Visiting Hitt Hall
If you’re a student, a prospective Hokie, or just a local local checking it out, here is how to handle the space:
- Time your lunch. Perry Place is great, but 12:15 PM is still a madhouse. Try going at 1:30 PM. You’ll get your food faster and actually find a seat by a window.
- Look up in the Innovation Lab. Even if you aren't a construction major, peek into the labs. Look at the exposed structural elements. It’s a free lesson in how the world is put together.
- Use the outdoor spaces. The landscaping around Hitt Hall was designed to be functional. There are spots to sit that aren't just the Drillfield grass.
- Check the menus online. Use the Grubhub app—which is how VT Dining mostly runs now—to see what’s cooking at the Smokehouse before you make the trek.
Hitt Hall Virginia Tech represents a shift. It’s a move away from siloed departments and toward a "live-work-eat" model of campus design. It’s ambitious. It’s loud. And it’s exactly what the North Precinct needed to stop feeling like a construction site and start feeling like the future of the university.
Next Steps for Information:
Check the official Virginia Tech Dining Services website for daily operating hours at Perry Place, as these can shift during breaks or finals week. For those interested in the academic side, the Myers-Lawson School of Construction hosts open houses twice a year where you can get a guided tour of the specialized labs and see the student projects in the Innovation Lab firsthand.