USF undertaking massive on-campus student housing project. Not only do they bring more students on-campus to increase the traditional college atmosphere but they also get a ton of money from the developer. Makes our Innovation Village deal look paltry by comparison, though it obviously allowed us to build the stadium which was a very good thing.

Key quotes from the article (link below):

"On Thursday, the Florida Board of Governors approved a public-private partnership (P3) between USF and developer Capstone-Harrison Street to build the estimated $133 million dollar village. It's the largest P3 in the history of the State University System and the largest housing project ever approved by the Board.

The new complex will have 2,171 beds… raising the total number of beds on the Tampa campus to almost 6,500.

 …

Capstone specializes in student housing developments, with projects at University of Florida, Florida State University, Florida Atlantic University and the University of West Florida. Harrison Street is a real estate private equity firm.

…

Under terms of the agreement, Capstone-Harrison Street will be responsible for financing, building and operating the village. In return, it will receive the rent from the students. USF will lease the land to Capstone-Harrison and receive $317 million over 52 years.

The project is expected to be completed in June 2018.

An on-campus Publix supermarket is part of the project but needs to receive approval separate from the village. The Board of Governors will take up that proposal at its January 2016 meeting in Tallahassee."



Story here