Signature Gift
Carrizo Oil & Gas contributes a record $5 million toward construction of College Park Center
Spring 2011 · Comment ·
One of UT Arlington鈥檚 most highly anticipated construction projects received a big boost last fall when Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. pledged $5 million to support . The gift is the largest single cash commitment in the University鈥檚 history.
The Houston-based energy company has been developing the University鈥檚 natural gas resources for several years and in 2009 donated $1 million to establish a graduate research fellowship to attract top scholars and researchers to UT Arlington. The natural gas partnership has generated more than $6 million in royalties since campus wells went into production in late聽2008.
UT Arlington learned in 2006 that the campus sits on a sweet spot within the Barnett Shale, one of the largest natural gas fields in the nation. Since then Carrizo has completed 22 wells at a single campus site.
鈥�This commitment to College Park Center is transformational for UT Arlington,鈥� President James D. Spaniolo says. 鈥淲e believe it signals many great things to聽come.鈥�
When completed in late 2011, the 6,500-seat College Park Center will give the UT Arlington basketball and volleyball teams a state-of-the-art home court and downtown Arlington a signature facility for world-class concerts, conferences, commencement ceremonies, and other community events. The $78 million center is under construction east of Pecan Street, between Second and Fourth streets.
鈥�College Park Center promises to have a dramatic impact on the campus and be a resource for the entire community,鈥� says S.P. 鈥淐hip鈥� Johnson IV, Carrizo鈥檚 president and chief executive officer. 鈥淲e believe that a robust and vibrant campus is a key ingredient in attracting outstanding students and in helping more of them earn their degrees.鈥�