Life on Campus at NC State: May 2021

I last put one of these together in early April 2021. Since that time, the baseball team has gone on one hell of a run to rebound from their rough start, and please god no one remind me about whatever happened yesterday in Charlotte. Anyway.....

Belltower Renovations Completed:

I’ve mentioned these Belltower renovations across a few of these Life on Campus posts, the first of which was way back in December 2017. However, these renovations are now complete and the NCSU Belltower at Henry Square is open for business your exterior viewing pleasure.

I’ve embedded a few social media posts below that include videos of the first actual ringing of the Belltower, as well as some self-guided interior virtual tours:

Tim Peeler recently put together a very good piece that details the history of the Belltower.

To go along with the rededication of the Belltower, the University has also ramped up the marketing for their new Belltower-specific clothing line.

Carter-Finley Designer Passes Away:

Charles Kahn, a former NC State College of Design professor and the designer of one “Carter-Finley Stadium” passed away on April 8, 2021. The article that’s linked above, which is also from Tim Peeler, goes into great depth about the entire design process and how the Stadium’s design differs from many of the other stadiums built during that era.

Carter-Finley Enhancements Announced:

These Carter-Finley enhancements were announced last month, the details of which can be found here. But these upgrades will include:

1. The conversion of parking at the northeast corner of the stadium into a concourse expansion that will host food-trucks and beer vending stands; and
2. The removal of 1,700 seats in the form of metal bleachers in the north end zone and the subsequent conversion of that area into a “loge and suite seating section” that will include carpeting, tents and tables.

Players’ Retreat Delays Reopening Until June:

PR has been closed for most of this whole global pandemic thing, so I’ve had to find new places to procure Old Tuffy.

However, after announcing a planned reopening in May, PR recently provided an update on their Facebook page putting the entire world on notice that they will now be reopening in June.

Of note, the exterior has been changed slightly as the red awning has been removed and stained wooden planks have been installed in place of the awning. IIRC, this is actually now closer to how the exterior of PR looked prior to the installation of that red awning.

PR will also be hosting a vaccination event on Tuesday June 1 from 5 - 8 pm.

Everyone that gets vaccinated at this event will receive a $20 PR Gift Card to be used at the PR after they reopen in the middle of June. Each individual who receives a $20 Gift Card will also be entered into a raffle to win a $1,000 PR Gift card or a PR Scotch Club Membership.

My birthday is coming up in July for anyone that wins this and wants to buy me $1,000 of Old Tuffy.

Centennial Campus Rezoned:

This was first mentioned at the end of last year, but NCSU had been seeking to increase the square footage of buildings located on Centennial and to allow the construction of office towers of up to 28 stories. This rezoning request has now been approved, which should allow NCSU to build a bit more vertically on Centennial and provide for more public/private partnerships for non-academic buildings on the campus.

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That’s all I have for this month. And like I said at the start of this, please god no one ever remind me of that damned baseball game from yesterday, it didn’t happen.