The $65 million space, which broke ground in October 2023, was approved by the Texas Legislature in 2021 as a part of the state’s $389 million capital construction bond awarded to the university for improvements across campus facilities and infrastructure, officials previously said.
Now, university officials said they are looking to leverage the ongoing legislative session for a new $175 million health technology facility aimed at providing regional training at the Sugar Land campus.
“We are very grateful for all the support our [representatives] have given us,” said Jay Neal, associate vice president of academic affairs and chief operating officer for UH at Sugar Land. “This new building is going to be full Day 1, so as we continue to grow, ... you have to plan ahead.”
What’s happening?
The 75,000-square-foot technology building—adjacent to the existing technology building—will house the Cullen College of Engineering-Technology Division, which has been transitioning to the Sugar Land campus since 2022, Neal said.
The three-story building will accommodate its first classes this fall. This will complete the transition from the main campus and bring over the last two departments, which are electrical power technology and computer engineering technology, Neal said. The new building will include:
- Wet and dry labs
- Traditional and active-learning classrooms
- Computer labs
- Student lounge areas
- Conference spaces
- Student advising spaces
Margaret A. Kidd, supply chain and logistics technology program director and instructional associate professor for the Cullen College of Engineering, said she has seen the Houston region grow exponentially over the last 20 years, which has influenced the university's programs.
"The Sugar Land/Katy areas are some of the fastest growing in our region in terms of housing and jobs," she said. "The new buildings provide the space to meet the needs of our community and more saliently provide an alternative to driving downtown or to [the] main campus."
Additionally, undergraduate student Esther Oseni said the new space will allow students to access modern resources to carry out research, work on real-world initiatives and cooperating with peers and teachers.
"The increased opportunities for practical learning and teamwork that the new facility will offer are what most excite me," she said.
Zooming in
As construction nears completion, Neal said university officials are now requesting $175 million from the state Legislature to build a health technology building for the Andy & Barbara Gessner College of Nursing.
If approved, the 80,000-square-foot building will bring classrooms, instructional and research labs, student support spaces and offices.
The building would also house a Perioperative Nursing Center aimed at providing training through virtual reality, artificial intelligence and robotic surgery, Neal said.
The nursing center is an additional $15 million request that could help grow the region’s health care workforce as demand mirrors the state’s needs. The U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration predicts Texas will need 310,700 nurses by 2037.
“We are maxed out in the space we currently have,” Neal said. “We need more clinical spaces, and we need more faculty lines, but we also need more space.”
Digging deeper
Carlos Guzman, director of Fort Bend County’s internal Economic Opportunity and Development department, said he believes universities play a key role in creating and sustaining a thriving workforce environment.
“Companies that are expanding throughout the country are always looking at available workforce as a key component in their site selection component,” he said. “Key investments also spur industry partnerships as well as opportunities for entrepreneurship.”
Neal said the university is always working with city, county and industry officials to determine what workforce needs the community has and how the university can help meet those needs.
“I want my students to have career options,” he said. “Looking [at] what businesses are coming out here and the businesses that are growing to be that professional workforce pipeline for the region, ... the conception to market model is what we have out here.”
The college’s legislative request comes as the county’s population continues to grow, estimated to hit 1 million by 2030, county officials previously said. Residents are also getting older and needing more access to care.
To meet the area's growing needs, Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital is undergoing a $231 million expansion that will bring at least 150 jobs by 2027, Community Impact reported.
Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital officials said they were excited about the university’s potential investment in health care.
Meanwhile, the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center broke ground March 31 near Smart Financial Centre on the hospital’s second largest Houston-area facility, set to be completed in 2029.
What’s next?
The legislative session began Jan. 14, with a bill filing deadline of March 15, according to the Texas Legislative Council’s website. The session is slated to adjourn June 2, barring extensions through special sessions.
“Our hope is that we will receive favorable news from the Legislature who have been very supportive of the instructional sites, particularly as they meet the growing demands of the region’s and state’s economies and priorities,” Neal said.
If awarded, university officials said they expect to receive funding in early 2026 and will begin the design phase for the building, which is anticipated to take approximately a year followed by construction bidding. Construction is expected to take 18-21 months, Neal said.
