Clemson trustees approve first phase of $175M housing project By Lauren Pierce 6 hrs ago CLEMSON — Clemson University is moving forward with plans for a new student housing community on the former Johnstone Hall site, with trustees approving the first phase of the $175 million project during meetings last week.
The Board of Trustees’ Finance and Facilities Committee approved the proposal Thursday, followed by approval from the full board Friday. The first phase authorizes $3.1 million to establish the design budget for the project.
Kelly Collins, Clemson’s interim senior vice president for finance and operations and chief financial officer, outlined the proposed timeline.
“We anticipate bringing this back to the board in June of next year for phase two approval, with construction beginning in January 2028 and an estimated completion date of July 2030,” Collins said.
The project’s total estimated cost is $175 million, to be funded through a combination of housing improvement funds and higher education revenue bonds.
Project details
Plans call for a new residential community totaling approximately 185,000 gross square feet on the former sites of Johnstone Hall and the Edgar A. Brown Student Union. The development would provide about 560 beds intended for first-year students, along with dining, study and community spaces.
Johnstone Hall, a former dormitory complex built in 1954, housed generations of Clemson undergraduates before its recent demolition.
According to the administration’s proposal, the new housing community is intended to “strengthen student connections and campus engagement” while providing modern accommodations that better reflect current student preferences. The development will include a variety of unit types and indoor and outdoor amenities.
The project will add two retail dining venues with seating for up to 250 students. The additional dining options are intended to address demand in the university’s campus core dining district, which accounts for 42 percent of all campus meal transactions, according to the university.
The site will also include collaboration, study and meeting areas, as well as office and support space for Residential Living, Residential Learning and Auxiliary Enterprises.
The proposed development is designed to complement nearby core campus housing while creating a campus neighborhood with “visual and pedestrian connections to Tillman Hall.”
University administrators described the project as an important part of Clemson’s long-term housing and student life plans as the university works to replace aging residential facilities that have reached the end of their useful lives.
The new beds are expected to help maintain adequate on-campus housing capacity while allowing for the eventual demolition of obsolete housing elsewhere on campus.
Under the proposed schedule, students are expected to occupy the new housing for the fall 2030 semester.
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