Smaller version of VERVE student apartments gets OK for downtown Columbia
The VERVE student apartment complex being built near the University of South Carolina baseball stadium is moving forward, but it will be smaller than first announced.
The project will now be four stories and 700 beds, compared to the five stories and up to 960 beds that was initially proposed for the project. The parking garage will also be smaller, going from 500 cars to 368, according to documents filed with the city of Columbia.
The initial proposal also planned for 5,000 square feet of retail space on the apartment’s ground floor, but that component was not part of the site plan approved by Columbia’s planning commission Thursday.
The apartment project will be a $90 million investment, the developers say. It will be built on roughly 4 acres between Blossom, Huger and Wheat streets and includes a dog park, as well as athletic courts and a pool.
Available apartments will range from studios to five bedrooms.
St. Louis-based developer Subtext Acquisitions also promises to install a new traffic signal at one of two intersections after consulting with the state Department of Transportation.
The signal would be placed at either the intersection of Williams and Blossom streets, or Huger and Catawba streets.
The VERVE apartments next will need approval from Columbia’s Design/Development Review Commission.
