Greek Life is continuing work on the Greek Village project, and Director of Greek Life John Mountz said students may get see the beginnings of new houses next year.

William Gallimore, senior in mechanical engineering and chapter president of Sigma Phi Epsilon said he has been happy with the progress.

“We’re happy to see it’s coming along so quickly,” he said.

Although the entire village is not due to be completed until 2018, Mountz said incoming students may have the opportunity to see those built in Phase 1.

If Greek Life stays on schedule, demolition will be completed and lots will be available to organizations by October 1, with building likely to begin next year, he said.

According to Mountz, here has been a tremendous amount of site construction completed since students left in May, thrilling those who have been awaiting tangible progress after many years of planning.

Many had been skeptical of the University’s decision to undergo the project, but Mountz said he believes that this is merely fear of the unknown, which will be resolved once Phase 1 of the project is completed and students are able to see the vast improvement between the old and the new.

The condition of the buildings have had a direct affect on recruitment, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by Greek organizations.

“I would be much more willing to join a fraternity if the housing conditions were better,” Michael Boger, sophomore in criminology, said. “At their current state they can hardly be considered decent.”

The University of South Carolina has served as a model throughout the planning and construction of this project, Mountz said, with the idea is to bring together the Greek organizations as a community.

“The difference between N.C. State’s houses and the University of South Carolina’s is that N.C. State is working with existing houses, versus [USC], who built them all at once,” he said.

With the construction of amenities such as a club house or a community center, he said Greek organizations at State will have opportunities that USC lacks.

For instance, rather than host recruitment ceremonies in the basement of fraternity houses, Mountz said the community center would provide a venue for multiple groups to gather within their own section of campus.

Also, the construction of the Greek Village will provide townhouses for those smaller organizations who currently have 25 members or less.

The concept of this community has significantly improved relations between the University and its Greek organizations, which had been growing in strain up until the year 2000, according to Mountz.

The project has called for communication between the Greek organizations, its alumni groups and the University itself, he said.