Another student complex planned for near USC stadium

A 507-bed student housing complex is being planned for near Williams-Brice Stadium on the site of the old Colonial Warehouse on Shop Road.

Florida-based Reign Living plans a four-story, 132-unit private dormitory for the 10-acre site between The Gates at Williams-Brice condominium complex and the old Morris Furniture Warehouse and River Rat Brewery, according to documents filed with the Columbia Planning Commission.

The 274,000-square-foot complex would be divided into 21 three-bedroom units and 111 four-bedroom units, the documents show. The complex also would include a clubhouse.

Efforts to reach the the developers were unsuccessful.

The company’s website identified the project as The Stadium at USC. The complex is within walking distance of the University of South Carolina’s Williams-Brice football stadium.

It is expected to be completed in 2018, the planning commission documents show.

A traffic study, conducted by a Columbia engineering firm, concludes that the complex would have “minimal impact” on Shop Road and George Rogers Boulevard because of future widening projects on those roads.

Richland County currently has a plan to widen Shop Road to a five lane roadway – two through lanes in each direction and a two way left turn lane, the study said. This widening is planned for 2020 and includes the relocation and realignment of the intersection of Shop Road and George Rogers Boulevard, it said.

The company has one other project, according to the website: a 42-unit, 150-bed complex called SOHO Living at Tallahassee near the Florida State University campus.

The USC project would require demolition of the sprawling Colonial Warehouse. The warehouse’s expansive grounds have been used for game-day parking and large student parties during football games.

Student housing complexes differ from traditional apartments in the that they rent by the bed rather than the unit. In recent years, Columbia has seen an explosion in private dormitories because of an expanding University of South Carolina and tax breaks offered by Richland County and the city.

The competing private dorms often have resort-style amenities such as large pools, exercise centers and volleyball courts.

About two years ago, a Charlotte developer had planned to build student apartments across Shop Road from the proposed The Stadium project — at the Shuman-Owens Supply Co. warehouse site — but those plans were withdrawn.

This story was originally published June 2, 2017 at 11:51 AM with the headline "Another student complex planned for near USC stadium."