UCF offers preview of downtown campus

ORLANDO, Fla. — The University of Central Florida and Valencia College have less than three months left to finish their downtown Orlando campus.

Close to 8,000 students will start classes on August 26th.

On Tuesday, Channel 9 got a tour of the campus. There was so much to see and seemingly so much still to do before opening day.

“The carpet will start going in soon and the flooring, and then our hardwired furniture after that,” said Mike Kilbride, UCF Downtown’s assistant vice president. He said with confidence, “We're going to be ready for the first day of classes.”

Faculty and staff will start transitioning there in the beginning of August, then students will move in August 21st, he said.

This has been a dream in the making for years, ever since the city blew up the old Amway Center. In its place now is the Dr. Philips Academic Commons, which will house the majority of classrooms, study areas and a library.

There is also the UnionWest, a 640-bed residence hall and Valencia’s Culinary and Hospitality Program. The building’s private developer has also leased the first floor to several businesses. There will be a Qdoba, Dunkin' Donuts, and a Subway plus the credit union Addition Financial.

Both UCF and Valencia said this downtown campus will be a game-changer for their students.

“If you think about legal studies, for example, which is one of the programs that will be here in the downtown campus, if we peer out this window, we can see the courthouse building,” said Kilbride. “And those are opportunities for our students.”