UNT Dallas hosts ribbon cutting ceremony for big new building Thursday

by PegNews wire

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Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and several state legislators plan to attend.

DALLAS — State Sen. Royce West of Dallas (District 23), State Rep. Helen Giddings (District 109), State Rep. Roberto Alonzo (District 104) and Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert will help cut the ribbon on a new building and welcome the first freshman class to the city’s first public university at 8 a.m. August 26.

The University of North Texas at Dallas cuts the ribbon on its second building—a three-story, 103,000 square-foot structure. The UNT System Board of Regents, UNT System Chancellor Lee Jackson, and local business and community leaders also will help welcome the university’s first freshmen students as they show up for their first day of classes.

The new building contains classrooms, labs, an expanded library, a food court, and staff and faculty offices, including the Caruth Police Institute. School officials will provide tours of the building after the ceremony.

Local residents are invited to see the new building when UNT Dallas hosts a community picnic/open house from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. September 25. That event is being held in conjunction with the Dallas Police Department’s “Kid's Health and Safety Fair,” which features free health screenings, games, and entertainment.

The name officially changes to the University of North Texas at Dallas on September 1. The school opened in January 2000 as the System Center at Dallas — a satellite campus of UNT — and later became known as the UNT Dallas Campus. After enrollment reached the legislature’s mandated threshold of 1,000 full-time equivalent students in February 2009, the school began the process of becoming a four-year, independent university.

Gov. Rick Perry signed Senate Bill 629 on May 27, 2009, allowing the school to issue $25 million in tuition revenue bonds partially to pay for the building. The total cost of the building is $41.8 million. UNT Dallas must raise the remaining $14.2 million.

The Beck Group and the Warrior Group were selected as general contractors, and Overland Partners Architects of San Antonio was the architectural and engineering design team. They worked with UNT System executives to pursue LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certification for the new building.

The rating system — developed by the U.S. Green Building Council — means construction is independently verified to meet high environmental and efficiency standards. For example, drains throughout the building’s roof will carry rainwater to a 60,000-gallon cistern that will be used to irrigate the campus, and the east wing of the building features a roof garden. The building also maximizes the use of natural light though windows and skylights.

In addition, 448 solar panels line the roof of the north wing of the building. Tony Gust with Meridian Solar said the panels will produce 100.4 kilowatts of power—enough to run 1,000 100-watt light bulbs—five hours a day, producing about 500 kilowatt hours per day.

source: UNT Dallas

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