Coastal Carolina University will begin the new year with the addition of more than 1,000 beds for student housing as a result of the recent acquisition of CampusEdge by the CCU Student Housing Foundation. The apartment complex is located on U.S. 544 near its Conway campus.

The transaction was completed on Dec. 30, 2009, according to Stan Godshall, executive director of the Coastal Carolina University Student Housing Foundation, the nonprofit organization that provides student housing facilities for the University.

The CampusEdge property will be combined with University Place, an adjacent student apartment complex that is already part of the Coastal Carolina University student housing system, creating a 46-building complex that will be called University Place Apartments.

The additional 1,092 beds will enable the University to implement a sophomore housing requirement beginning in the Fall 2010 semester. This new provision, created as part of an effort to increase retention and graduation rates at the University, will require sophomores to live in the newly enlarged University Place Apartments. Freshmen will continue to primarily occupy residence halls on the main campus. (Students who live with their parents within a 50-mile radius of campus or who meet other specific conditions may be exempt from this rule.)

“Prior to acquiring this property, CCU did not have space to house both our freshman and sophomore classes in campus residence halls,” said Haven Hart, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students. The addition of the CampusEdge facility will increase the University’s on-campus resident population capacity from 2,287 to 3,379.

With the CampusEdge facility now coming under Coastal Carolina University management, University leaders and local law officials foresee an improvement in security at the property. As a privately-owned entity, CampusEdge was marketed to students but attracted a number of nonstudents, and the incidence of crime associated with the property was troubling, according to University President David A. DeCenzo.

“With the addition of campus law enforcement, resident assistants (RAs) living on the premises, and an exclusively student population, the facility—now combined with University Place—will provide a safe, structured environment for our students,” said DeCenzo, who also cited the benefits of the property’s proximity to campus, its system of sidewalks and streetlamps, and the shuttle service provided by the University.

“I congratulate CCU for bringing CampusEdge under the management of the University,” said Reggie Gosnell, chief of the Conway Police Department. “This acquisition will serve to improve the safety and security of the students and enhance their college experience. It will also allow us to free some of our resources to increase our visibility within that very busy patrol sector.”

The University is now working on a transition plan for the property. CampusEdge residents are being notified about the change in ownership. Current leases will be maintained through the end of their term. An Open House designed to showcase the new apartments is being planned.

Students and parents who would like more information about housing requirements and CampusEdge, contact Residence Life at 843-349-6400, or email reslife@coastal.edu. For more information, contact Martha Hunn at 843-349-2962.