Dramatic changes are in store for the Columbia campus—a new restaurant, a new freshman residence hall, and the demolition of several major buildings—following an April 29 meeting of USC’s Board of Trustees.
The new eatery will be called the Humanities Pavilion Restaurant and will be built on the site of the patio between Gambrell Hall and the humanities buildings. The $1.5 million restaurant will replace the Sidewalk Café.
A new $36.5 million, 700-bed residence hall will feature two four-story buildings built on the site of the current Towers complex behind the Graduate Science Research Center. The four Towers are scheduled for demolition in 2006. The new residence hall, which will follow West Quad’s lead in energy-efficient construction, in intended for Honors College freshmen and Capstone Scholars.
In other business, trustees changed the location of a future band practice facility and field. The building previously was slated to use part of the Bates parking lot on Whaley Street; the new location is on the 300 block of Sumter Street beside the engineering college’s machine shop on an intramural field south of the Blatt P.E. Center. The USC String Project and dance studios might also move to the new facility.
In addition, a $32 million list of permanent campus improvements was OK’d, including roof and window replacements, continued renovations at the Jones Physical Science Center, and the addition of a sprinkler system, new exit doors, and windows for Gambrell Hall. The projects will be completed in phases as funds are available.
Trustees also reviewed plans for a $14 million, 6,000-seat baseball stadium near the Colonial Center; new locations must be identified for several University units that will be displaced by the stadium, including the motor pool, landscaping and environmental services, facility services, campus planning, and custodial services.
Other projects OK’d at the April 29 meeting include:
- sale of a half-acre tract and 5,000-square-foot house at 1819 Pendleton St. USC’s Psychological Services Center currently occupies the site.
- acquisition of four acres on Catawba Street bounded by South Main, Sumter, and Whaley streets. The site will be used to build a new biomass gasification plant, which will generate steam for the entire campus.
- a 12-foot-by-27-foot marquis for the Koger Center to be built on the corner of Assembly and Greene streets in accordance with city zoning requirements.
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