On Friday morning, USC President Michael Amiridis and company celebrated the opening of the new Campus Village, four six-story red brick buildings with green spaces, courtyards, and a clock tower. The completion of the $240 million project is a milestone and is considered the most ambitious construction project in the University’s 222-year history.
Located on the southern region of campus, the village smells brand new even from the outside. Look south and you’ll see Williams Brice Stadium on the horizon. Look north and you’ll see the USC smokestack shooting up from the Horseshoe with the downtown Columbia skyline behind it.
If that’s not enough school spirit for you, the “Mighty Sound of the Southeast” practices in the mornings around 9 a.m., so the fight song and a steady metronome beat will be the wake up call to the 1,800 resident students.
A closer look
- Dining: Campus Village is home to The Pavilion, a nearly 14,000 square-foot dining hall that seats 650 and is open to all USC students.
- Retail: The Gamecock General Store sundry shop, a Jimmy John’s and a Starbucks coffee accessible to the entire community is scheduled to open this fall.
- Living/learning communities: Campus Village is home to several USC student living-learning communities.
- Transportation: The transportation hub and pedestrian access make it easy to get to and from central campus. Additional campus parking within walking distance of Campus Village is available to students with automobiles.
Again this year, USC welcomed a record number of freshman campus. With over 7,000 in the class of 2027, enrollment growth is projected at 1.5% to 3% annually looking forward. Students will continue to see the No. 1 spot for First Year Experience around campus, projects like this and the University 101 program are big reason why.