SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — A group of University of Notre Dame graduate students are trying to prevent the demolition of an off-campus apartment complex for married students.

The University Village complex houses many married couples with young children, but it’s scheduled to close and be razed next spring.

Residents say the apartment complex is a close-knit community with regular communal dinners and Masses and a playground.

The South Bend Tribune reports some graduate students are circulating a petition calling for apartments to be saved.

Erin Hoffmann Harding is Notre Dame’s vice president for student affairs. She says the school still plans to close the apartments next May, and says married students and their families will get help find new housing either on- or off-campus.