Besides the usual sorts of apartment complex amenities (listed under about The Village), University Village offers a number of of special amenities that are much less common:

Garden Plots
Every spring, the University ploughs our Village garden plots which are next to the community center. These are available for free to interested residents who can plant and harvest until late October. The Village also provides a shed full of tools, spickets, hoses, mulch, tomato cages, and more. Each spring we have a garden kick-off to assign plots (each are about 200 square feet, although residents can have more than one depending on availability).

Furniture Exchange and Clothing Exchange
In the Cripe Street community center is our clothing exchange, where residents may drop off gently used clothing. Volunteers sort everything, and residents may take whatever they wish free of charge. In one of the empty basement apartments is our furniture exchange, where residents bring any gently used household items, from lamps and couches to cups and plates to baby swings and carseats. Like the clothing exchange, these are available for free to interested residents, although it is meant in particular for international residents who might move in without furnishings.

Guest Apartments
Two apartments in the Village are fully furnished guest apartments. For $25 a night, guests of residents can stay in a guest apartment for up to 7 consecutive days.

Events and Activities
The Village holds a wide variety of events and activities throughout the year. These range from annual Christmas parties to blueberry picking trips to opening picnics to cake decorating classes. For more information on Village events and activities, see here.

Trolley
The university operates a trolley service (free for students and their families) that stops at various points on campus and at St. Mary's College across the street. Every 30 minutes the Trolley passes through the Village, and residents often use it to get to and from class. The trolley will also connect you with bus lines running to the airport and to major areas of South Bend and Mishawaka.

Security
As part of Notre Dame's campus, the Village is completely integrated into campus security. Notre Dame police regularly patrol the Village. Emergency maintenance is available free of charge 24 hours a day, and campus police are always available to jumpstart a car or assist in any other emergency. Outer building doors lock at dusk, and bicycle registration is available.

Community Center Office
At the staff office in the community center, residents can make free copies and faxes, use an internet connected computer, borrow a vacuum cleaner or sewing machine, request a free rug steam cleaning (up to once per year) or just visit with the staff.

Outdoor Play Area
The six buildings that make up University Village surround a large fenced play area. Inside are two playground areas with swings, climging toys, sand boxes, and more. Between the two playgrounds is a large green space for games or picnics, scattered around are picnic tables, and along the edge next to the fences are clothes lines for residents' use. Beside the community center is a large barbecue grill, picnic area, and a volleyball court.