Development
BY BEN THOMPSON
UT, MD Anderson medical center may move to North Austin
Northwest Austin is under consideration. “We’re not just building an integrated academic medical center, we’re building a district for the future. For that reason, we are looking at a larger site on UT land north of campus near The Domain to allow for a long-term vision for this monumental step forward,” he said Nov. 20. UT owns several Northwest Austin properties, and it’s unclear which are under consideration for the future medical center. An alternate location hasn’t been nalized yet, and the Erwin Center property remains under consideration. The timing of a decision for the location hasn’t been determined and the medical center is still expected to open in 2030.
The University of Texas at Austin and MD Anderson Cancer Center may develop their new medical complex in Northwest Austin, a potential change to the institutions’ original plans to bring a “state-of-the-art” hospital and research campus downtown on the former Frank Erwin Center site. The UT Medical Center was rst announced in summer 2023, envisioned as a pair of medical towers with an MD Anderson clinical and research cancer center and UT Austin specialty hospital. Following the Erwin Center’s demolition at 1701 Red River St., the UT Medical Center’s groundbreaking on the old arena property was expected in 2026 ahead of a 2030 opening. However, UT System board of regents Chair Kevin Eltife recently announced an expanded campus in
Moody Center
New arena and housing project
Original proposed UT Medical Center
OAKWOOD CEMETERY
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Something to note
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Moving away from a downtown medical center would represent a reversal from just months ago, when Texas law was adjusted to remove develop- ment restrictions and allow taller hospitals on the Erwin Center site. Legislators this spring passed House Bill 3114 from state Rep. Charlie Geren, R Fort Worth. The bill removed several Capitol View Corridors—reg- ulatory limitations that block new development within certain sightlines of the Capitol dome—that spanned the medical district property. While UT didn’t comment on the legislation, Geren cited the hospital plans when laying out his bill, and MD Anderson thanked the university for steering HB 3114 through the Legislature.
The university also opened a solicitation for a new arena and student-athlete housing complex covering 4 acres of campus. The new venue will serve as the home of Longhorns women’s volleyball. It’ll have capacity for roughly 6,000 attendees, with exibility to expand for other events like concerts as a complement to the adjacent Moody Center. The 2033 Higher Education Development Foundation, which supports UT real estate activity, will review proposals for one or both facilities that must be submitted by Feb. 6.
A new multi-use arena and housing complex for student athletes will be developed next to the Moody Center o I35 downtown.
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