The UCA Board of Trustees met Aug. 16 to discuss the future of the proposed Greek Village.

President Tom Courtway proposed the Greek Village to be located on the north side of campus, south of College Avenue. The Greek Village would be between Western and Donaghey Avenues and the project would feature five sorority residences, each housing 20 sorority members.

Construction costs for the project are estimated  at approximately $12 million.

The project was previously proposed to be constructed over 12.5 acres on the southwest corner of campus at the intersection of Dave Ward Drive and Farris road, south of the Jewel Moore Nature Reserve.

According to the proposal, Student Life staff said it does not believe the location by the Jewel Moore Nature Reserve “would be conducive to the long-term growth and involvement of the Greek system in the university.”

Courtway presented different renderings by Wali Cardadine Architects of the proposed village, featuring five sorority houses and a community center.

The Greek community center could be used as an event center and rooms could be leased to smaller Greek organizations for chapter rooms, he said.

“I am not asking the board to take a vote today, but we want to explain it, answer questions and then ask the board to act at some future date,” Courtway said.

He said five sororities have shown interest in leasing the houses and three fraternities are interested leasing university houses.

According to the proposal, four other fraternities said they want to build their own houses on university property and eight fraternities and sororities with smaller student membership are interested in leasing chapter rooms in the proposed community center.

Elizabeth Farris, board of trustees member, asked Courtway if the Greek Village was more important to the university than a new science or nursing building.

“I think we can do both,” he said.

Courtway said the Greek Village will bring in housing revenue. Sixty percent of the students interested in moving into Greek Village housing would be coming in from off campus housing and 40 percent would be moving in from university housing.

“Clearly this is a   demographic we need to grow,” Vice President of Student Services and Institutional Diversity Ronnie Williams said. “It’s a way of bonding with our students and getting them to stay.”

Board member Robert Adcock said he was concerned with the new proposed location because of the distance there would be between the Greek Village and the Christian Cafeteria.

Courtway said students involved in Greek Life perform better academically than non-Greek students and having a Greek Village would encourage more students to go Greek.

Chairman Victor Green said the idea of a Greek Village “falls in line with the long-range goals of the university.”

In other business the board voted unanimously in favor of:

• a two-year agreement in Courtway’s employment from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2015,
• the acquisition of property located on 2331 College Avenue,
• for an architectural firm to develop a design for the space east of Donaghey Avenue, from South Boulevard to Bruce Street and Bruce Street to Martin Street, and
• to renew contracts with Boys State and OrgSync.