JOHNSON CITY, N.Y. -- The village of Johnson City is set to get its first taste of college life.
Binghamton University's School of Pharmacy is officially opening its doors, and students couldn't be happier.
"My first time seeing it was last week actually. So walking in and seeing the classrooms, I'm like, 'wow.' They really gave them a high quality building here," said Ositomiwa Osipitan, Pharmacy School teaching assistant.
The school will welcome more than 350 students into its brand new, 84,000 square foot facility.
But of course, with such a big group making their way into the village comes the need for more safety.
"I've been working closely with the Binghamton University Police Department and the university in general. We've toured the building. Our guys have access cards to be able to help out university police if that's necessary," said Brent Dodge, Johnson City police chief.
The majority of the policing near the school will be done by the department's community action team.
Dedicated officers will patrol nearby streets to ensure the safety of both students and the neighborhood.
"They're not responsible for handling routine calls so they're freed up all shift. Just their increased presence and their increased proactivity has already made a difference in the level of problems we're seeing on some of those streets," said Dodge.
Dodge says the increase in student population will be a benefit to the village.
"I don’t anticipate any trouble really, as far as that goes. I think the presence of the students are going to be welcomed by area businesses. It should help bring in more revenue for them," he said.
And teaching assistants say they hope to be a small part in turning the village around for the better.
"The downtown life in Binghamton is really based on the students, as well. So now bringing students into Johnson City is just going to help it economically and lively," said Osipitan.
Classes at the new School of Pharmacy will begin Wednesday morning.
Binghamton University also has plans to move its Decker School of Nursing to Johnson City by 2020.