By Andrea Picou, Staff Writer

Published in print Oct. 8, 2014

The Union Square Campus being developed downtown in Greensboro is going to be a healthcare training facility shared between UNCG, NC A&T, GTCC and Cone Health. UNCG will use the new space to expand nursing education programs.

The new building is a part of Union Square, a revitalization project with a goal of creating a mixed use, walkable space downtown.

The space will include a  hotel, apartments, street facing retail on the lower level, flexible commercial space for healthcare or office space, Union Square Campus and two parking decks.

The campus is estimated to cost up to $40 million, but the final cost is still being worked out by Union Square Campus Inc.

Last Spring, the UNC Board of Governors approved UNCG and A&T to lease the building once it is built. In August, the NC General Assembly approved $2 million in funding for USCI.

The Union Square project as a whole currently has $6.5 million in funding. The estimated cost for the entire project is $160 million.

Bob Chapman, a partner of South Elm Development Group (SEDG) said that the apartments and hotel will be self-funded and the parking decks will be funded with help from the apartments, hotel, the City of Greensboro, user fees, and possibly a TIF Bond.

Chapman explained, “A TIF Bond is paid out of the property tax.”

The TIF bond is not finalized, there is still some work being done to figure out how much property taxes will be. “Union Square Campus will be tax exempt, so that complicates it a little bit,” Chapman said.

He added that there may be fees for campus building users.

“The lot was a brownfield that needed to be revitalized,” Chapman stated. He mentioned specifically that there was coal left on the lot and Greensboro paid to have the lot cleaned.

The South Elm Street Development website explains, “The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines brownfields as abandoned, idle or underutilized industrial or commercial properties where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination, building deterioration/obsolescence and/or inadequate infrastructure.”

The site is bordered by railroad tracks owned by Norfolk Southern, and according to Chapman, “We are currently working to finalize the boundary of the sight.”

The exact location of the boundary is ambiguous.

The South Elm Development Group is spearheading the entire project, but USCI is focusing on the campus aspect of the project.

The SEDG is promoting the campus as a means to create job opportunities and increased earning potential by training nurses.

Overall they are promoting the project as an economic boost to downtown.