Collaborations between public universities and private entities are delivering the year’s two biggest college arena projects, the new Moody Center in Austin, and a renovated Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
In exchange for a prime patch of real estate, Oak View Group took on all the financial risk of developing the 15,000-seat, $385 million Moody Center for the University of Texas. OVG agreed to a long-term deal with the university to operate the venue but will turn over ownership to UT when the arena opens in late March...
“The way the deal has been structured between Texas and OVG has really gotten a lot of attention from other universities. There is a lot of discussion about other universities,” said CAA ICON’s Dan Vaillant, who is working on the Moody project as the owner’s representative. “It could be a new kind of market for the private operators.”
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