Mega Doctor News
By Melissa Vasquez
McALLEN, TEXAS – SEPT. 26, 2016 – The University of Texas System Board of Regents has unanimously approved the leasing of an approximately 85,000-square-foot facility in McAllen to UTRGV for medical research and educational and clinical uses.
The building – the result of a public-private partnership that has been in development for many months – is to be built at 2300 E. Dove Ave by Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, and DHR Real Estate Management, L.L.C., will lease the space to the university.
UTRGV President Guy Bailey said approval of the space will expand UTRGV’s footprint in the Valley and create ever-expanding opportunities for research that will positively affect healthcare, education and economic development in the region.
“We are pleased to be able to work with community partners like DHR on this leasing agreement, which will allow us to provide our students and research faculty a space in which to grow and discover,” he said. “Ultimately, the residents of the Rio Grande Valley will benefit from this partnership.”
“Doctors Hospital at Renaissance is very excited about our research agreement with UTRGV,” Marissa Castañeda, DHR senior executive vice president, said. “The building will bring world-class researchers to UTRGV, DHR and the RGV. By building the facility on the DHR campus, these researchers will work directly with the doctors, residents, students and other healthcare professionals at DHR and improve healthcare.”
Dr. Steven A. Lieberman, interim dean of the UTRGV School of Medicine, said the space will help expand the university’s research capabilities.
“This approval comes at a time of tremendous growth for the School of Medicine,” Lieberman said. “Just as we have grown our South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute from 22 to 52 researchers in less than two years, this space will allow us to establish and grow additional research programs.”
Rick Anderson, UTRGV executive vice president of finance and administration, said the completion date is projected to be January 2018.
“This is an exciting project for UTRGV,” he said. “We’re pleased the board has approved it, and we now can go ahead with finalizing the lease agreement with DHR.”
Building costs are estimated at between $32 million and $34 million, Anderson said. UTRGV has not finalized the leasing costs yet, but UTRGV could possibly pay about $2.5 million a year for the building, and operational costs would be additional and could range from $1.2 million to $1.4 million annually.
