UNT THCB Capital Expenditure Plan

GrandGreen · January 30, 2013

Not a slam at NT, but I think a lot of colleges need to rethink the money they are spending.

Traditional education is pricing itself out of the market. All those government backed loans have kept colleges going, but at some point I am afraid that is going to come to a crashing halt. It makes no economical sense to spend thousands of dollars on degrees that there is no market for.

There are already many predicting that the educational loan bubble could be as devastating as the housing debacle.

Even if that does not happen, I see a focus away from brick and mortar facilities to online education that is going to leave an over supply of facilities and to some extent educators.

TheWestie · January 30, 2013

Addition Construct Science and Tech Research Bldg Ph 1 50,000,000

Addition Discovery Park Greenhouse Addition 3,000,000

Addition University Union Renovation and Expansion 137,100,000

Infrastructure Discovery Park Infrastructure Development 15,000,000

Infrastructure Electrical Substation Expansion 4,000,000

Infrastructure Renovate General Academic Building MEP 4,700,000

Infrastructure Renovate Wooten Hall MEP 3,000,000

Land Acquisition Land Acquisitions Expansion Central Campus 10,000,000

Land Acquisition Purchase Apartment Complex-Maple St 2,000,000

New Construction Academic Building 75,000,000

New Construction Baseball Stadium 12,000,000

New Construction Construct College of Visual Arts and Design 90,000,000

New Construction Construct IT Services Facility 23,000,000

New Construction Construct Music Building 50,000,000

New Construction Construct Residence Hall 17,600,000

New Construction Construct Science and Tech Research Bldg Ph 2 48,000,000

New Construction Construct Sorority Housing 4,500,000

New Construction Construct Startup Facility at Discovery Park 25,000,000

New Construction Construct Track and Field Stadium 5,600,000

New Construction Discovery Park Academic Building 60,000,000

New Construction Materials Testing Laboratory 4,000,000

New Construction Research Building 40,000,000

New Construction UNT Hotel and Conference Center 82,500,000

New Construction Visitor's Center 2,500,000

Repair and Renovation CEng Laboratory Build Out 6,020,000

Repair and Renovation CEng Laboratory Build Out, Ph2 8,550,000

Repair and Renovation College of Visual Arts Exhibition Space 4,100,000

Repair and Renovation Marquis Hall Renovation 7,000,000

Repair and Renovation Relocate IT Functions 4,500,000

Repair and Renovation Renovate Administration Building (Phase 2) 4,000,000

Repair and Renovation Renovate Discovery Park 5,000,000

Repair and Renovation Renovate Matthews Hall MEP 4,200,000

Repair and Renovation Renovate West Hall Commons 1,500,000

Repair and Renovation Woodhill Square Renovations 4,000,000

That us only for the Denton campus, system wide the plans call for over a billion in expenditures.

This pleases TheWestie.

"Land Acquisition Purchase Apartment Complex-Maple St 2,000,000" is obviously that hellhole next to Clark Hall.

Also do you think that "Land Acquisition Land Acquisitions Expansion Central Campus 10,000,000" refers to buying all the land where IHOP, Rocking Rodeo and Sack-N-Save is?

Mean Green Matt · January 30, 2013

Not a slam at NT, but I think a lot of colleges need to rethink the money they are spending.

Traditional education is pricing itself out of the market. All those government backed loans have kept colleges going, but at some point I am afraid that is going to come to a crashing halt. It makes no economical sense to spend thousands of dollars on degrees that there is no market for.

There are already many predicting that the educational loan bubble could be as devastating as the housing debacle.

Even if that does not happen, I see a focus away from brick and mortar facilities to online education that is going to leave an over supply of facilities and to some extent educators.

The online universities are an absolute joke. College is an educational experience that goes way beyond the actual classroom. Hopefully the trend turns around quickly.

GrayEagle · January 30, 2013

Here is a breakdown of expenditures by (Denton) campus as reported by Cerebus:

North Campus/Discovery Park $264,570,000

Central Campus $448,600,000

Eagle Point Campus $100,100,000

That's a pretty good investment in the College of Engineering and Research in an attempt to gain Tier 1 status.

Green Otaku · January 30, 2013

Exciting to see. Sure would be nice if the populace of Denton would take a look at these numbers. $1 Billion dollars directly into the local economy thanks to UNT. Not to mention the future dollars said improvements will bring to town.

Of course The University could save a ton by scrapping the science cluster and just build a small chapel instead.

I know a lot of the people here bash the Denton community, I see lots of support around Denton though. The square had UNT flags all around the light posts, didn't they also do Friday pride day? TWU got no love and there are UNT flags in many stores. The community is ripe for some cooperation, the university should reach out and build more relationships with locals. Music workshops for elementary/middle school kids, have a business fair for Denton businesses so that they can mingle and network, do some community service to help out some neighborhoods. I know we already do some of this stuff, if the school can gain the gratitude of the community they will come out and support our school. We need to own Denton.

Edited January 30, 2013 by Green Otaku

Green Otaku · January 30, 2013

This pleases TheWestie.

"Land Acquisition Purchase Apartment Complex-Maple St 2,000,000" is obviously that hellhole next to Clark Hall.

Also do you think that "Land Acquisition Land Acquisitions Expansion Central Campus 10,000,000" refers to buying all the land where IHOP, Rocking Rodeo and Sack-N-Save is?

I was wondering what that was as well. The only other place I see is the housing above College Inn.

LakeTravis · January 30, 2013

I would chip in to see sack n shit get bull dozed.

It's an eye sore along with panchos as what most motorists see when they drive by UNT towards Dallas

DallasGreen · January 30, 2013

I know a lot of the people here bash the Denton community, I see lots of support around Denton though. The square had UNT flags all around the light posts, didn't they also do Friday pride day? TWU got no love and there are UNT flags in many stores. The community is ripe for some cooperation, the university should reach out and build more relationships with locals. Music workshops for elementary/middle school kids, have a business fair for Denton businesses so that they can mingle and network, do some community service to help out some neighborhoods. I know we already do some of this stuff, if the school can gain the gratitude of the community they will come out and support our school. We need to own Denton.

Denton has not and will not do anything that cost city $$$$. Have development cross that county line---- DFW is where the action is--let Denton be the backwoods non-college town it wants to be.

Snowy · January 30, 2013

This pleases TheWestie.

"Land Acquisition Purchase Apartment Complex-Maple St 2,000,000" is obviously that hellhole next to Clark Hall.

Also do you think that "Land Acquisition Land Acquisitions Expansion Central Campus 10,000,000" refers to buying all the land where IHOP, Rocking Rodeo and Sack-N-Save is?

I sure hope so! It would be great to be able to actually see campus from IH-35...

PlummMeanGreen · January 31, 2013

I know a lot of the people here bash the Denton community, I see lots of support around Denton though. The square had UNT flags all around the light posts, didn't they also do Friday pride day? TWU got no love and there are UNT flags in many stores. The community is ripe for some cooperation, the university should reach out and build more relationships with locals. Music workshops for elementary/middle school kids, have a business fair for Denton businesses so that they can mingle and network, do some community service to help out some neighborhoods. I know we already do some of this stuff, if the school can gain the gratitude of the community they will come out and support our school. We need to own Denton.

Maybe some of the Denton bashing because of how a 2 year old upstart football program in the Alamo City draws more now than we have in 100 years of college football? Of course, they're also doing better than SMU, Houston, Rice, etc, etc, etc, but North Texas should want to do all to differentiate from any of those schools because..........we have all the necessary tools to do such--we just don't have the marketing blueprints in place or the carpenters to make it happen yet..........IMHO.

I look at attendance during the Fry Era when Denton had about 39,000 population; Denton County had 99,000 population and was a county that Texas Almanac described as a "rural county" (which it was); now we have Denton at about 120,000 population and a Denton County that will soon enough be closing in on 700,000 plus citizens--honestly folks, we don't need Dallas and Fort Worth to make our success happen albeit we are considered part of the Metroplex.

And as we look at the attendance at our football games today which are (no better way to put it) just not commensurate with the growth of all of our present day & various UNT-related constituencies (student enrollment, city growth, county growth, DFW alumnus growth, etc).....................so all of this still begs the question that no one on campus ever seems to want to address of.....................What in Ceasar's Ghost name do we do up there to make our football program so damn unattractive to all the new blood, new faces or potentially new fans as compared to upstart UTSA who has made their terrificaly terrible football product attractive to mostly curiosity seekers yet in most impressive numbers?

This question will still piss off the usual ones but at which point do we all get tired of praising the ones wearing "The Emporer's New Clothes" but rather our (collectively) demanding from our leaders to stop once and for all the lip-service/B.S. modus operendis in Denton and to merely get down to solving what I think most would agree are the very problems which keeps our athetic program "barefoot & pregnant" (so to speak); that is, our favorite school from even ever being seriously named in any future conference alignments comparative to a 2 year old upstart college football program 5 hours south down Interstate 35.

North Texas is really that (here are those 2 words again) sleeping giant that just needs the right combination of leadership talent to wake it up since we know from our 41 year old Super Pit experience that outstanding venues alone will not get the job done. I think we have seen that Apogee (alone) is not going to git'er done, either. Just more scattershootin' (and RIP Blackie Sherrod).

GMG!

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Addendum: Also wouldn't hurt for a handful of present Texas High School 3, 4 and 5 star recruits to say next week: "Look at what we can do to make a difference in Mean Green Country, that is, make a difference with each of our God-given talents meshed with the ones already living in the Mean Green Village athletic dorm and then to say...."move out of our way Boise State because it's now time for a new national Mean Green Football Story!"

Nationally top ranked sports radio station, ie, Dallas' own KTCK 1310 "The Ticket" and its nationally known sportscaster Norm Hitzghes said 2 years ago as he was praising ou school for the building of Apogee Stadium. "Why not North Texas as the next Boise State....why not?"

Edited January 31, 2013 by PlummMeanGreen