Renovations to south campus will mean changes to the flow of traffic in and around parts of campus, leaving some students concerned about the effects on parking.
Approximately a year after the university introduced the proposed Campus Village project, the university reached the agreement with the City of Columbia and leadership from nearby neighborhoods to reduce on-site parking and eliminate commuter parking to moderate traffic and crime prevention.
The agreement includes reducing the number of proposed on-site parking spaces from 3,000 to 945 in a garage at Whaley and Sumter streets.
“Once completed, we anticipate a 17 percent net decrease in traffic compared to the current traffic volume in that area,” USC director of public relations Jeff Stensland said.
This reduction will be made possible by eliminating all surface parking garages, and on-site parking will be limited to residents only — no commuters. Additionally, permit holders will not be allowed to park elsewhere on campus, limiting incentive to move their cars.
The university plans to remedy this loss of parking by enhancing the on-campus shuttle service and incorporating bike and pedestrian access to the main areas of campus in order to discourage daily automobile use.
“We don’t anticipate the new development will create parking issues, and will in fact decrease area traffic," Stensland said. "The plan includes 945 spaces for residents, and with more private housing moving closer to campus, space in existing garages has been freed up for use by other Campus Village residents and those commuter students who currently park in the Bates surface lots. Additional commuter options are also being explored."
Students are excited to hear the outdated area of campus is being renewed but are concerned with the thought of the future parking situation.
“As far as housing goes, I think it’s great. I was a sophomore in 2013, and it was a pain for us to try to get on-campus housing for our second year, so I can imagine it’s even harder now that incoming freshman classes are expanding. It’s also probably going to generally improve that side of campus, since I know a lot of students living in dorms like Bates right now feel like they’re pretty far removed,” first year masters of teaching student Alison Schriro said.
Forty percent of the 951 current on-site parking spots are used by commuting students, according to The State.
“The plan is majorly inconsiderate of commuting students, who make up the majority of USC’s student body," Schiro said. "It’s no secret that our current parking situation is a struggle, and they’re talking about making it significantly worse … I think it’s great that USC requires first-year students to live on campus, but if they want to continue doing so, they should follow the lead of other schools and say that freshmen aren’t allowed to bring cars to campus.”
The tearing down of Bates House, Bates West, Cliff Apartments and Carolina Gardens for the new 18-acre Campus Village will lead to an additional 2,300 beds on campus for freshmen as well as upperclassmen. Phase I will begin with replacing Cliff Apartments likely in 2017.
The new residence hall will be buildings no more than six stories that will blend in with the architecture of the surrounding neighborhoods. The financing of the project and the selection of developer has not yet been determined.