#HookemWelfare: UT wants Austin taxpayers to finance new arena

"Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord,
But a just weight is His delight."
Proverbs 11:1

From the department of "you have GOT to be kidding me":

Texas AD Steve Patterson: Taxpayers should help finance new arena

Texas athletic director Steve Patterson said the school is “probably six to eight years” away from building a new basketball arena to replace the Erwin Center.

UT’s new Dell Medical School will eventually need the land the Erwin Center is situated on. School officials have yet to determine where a new arena fits into the campus master plan, though.

During a speaking engagement Monday night sponsored by Texas Monthly, Patterson reiterated his belief the city of Austin should shoulder some construction costs. Patterson has previously told the American-Statesman a new arena could cost a $500 million or more.

“The reality is that Austin has had a free arena for 3 1/2 decades at no investment whatsoever,” Patterson said. “You look at the growth projections five years out, to be a top 25 market in this country and not to have an invested a nickel in an arena is a heck of a position for the city of Austin to be in.

“So perhaps we ought to be looking at all the constituent groups and how they contribute or invest in a facility going forward,” Patterson added.

Read the whole thing here.

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On an unrelated note, at the same event Patterson spoke about upgrading the wi-fi system at DKR stadium; Cahnman's Musings fully supports this idea.