USC, tower developer working on compromise, delay

The University of South Carolina and the Memphis-based student housing development company are working on a compromise over the firm’s proposed 15-story tower near campus and have postponed an upcoming city review commission meeting.

“Representatives of the two groups will discuss options regarding the proposed Icon on Main collegiate housing community with the goal of achieving a solution beneficial to all parties,” EdR said Thursday in a statement issued from its Memphis offices.

Efforts to reach Rodney King, an EdR vice president who represented the company at city commission meetings, or Wes Hickman, USC’s spokesman, were unsuccessful Thursday.

The national development company said it has deferred its July 9 presentation to the Design/Development Review Commission to meet with USC officials. The commission is authorized to decide such disputes, but City Council could step in to make a final decision.

USC and EdR have clashed at commission committee meetings and publicly over the height of the tower, named Icon on Main. Backed by a shadow study done by the university, its alumni association recently launched an online campaign against the building, saying it will cast a “nasty shadow” over the Horseshoe and other historic sites.

A study by a company affiliated with the construction project disputes USC’s findings.

EdR officials have said repeatedly that building a shorter tower is not financially feasible.

USC is constructing an 884-bed student housing project west of Assembly Street, a few blocks from the South Main at College Street location of Icon on Main.

This story was originally published July 2, 2015 at 12:29 PM.