Utah Valley University has acquired 125 more acres at the new development located on the old Geneva Steel site in Utah County.
In 2011 Utah Valley University bought their first 100 acres at the Geneva site located west of I-15 north of Orem. It currently houses intramural fields. The new 125-acre acquisition doubles their footprint at Geneva which now nearly matches the 235-acre site the campus currently sits on in Orem. UVU President Matthew Holland says the purchase was necessary because they’re basically land locked at their current location.
“We’ve got to take advantage of the opportunity before us," he says. "Land is only going to get more expensive and harder to find, and harder to find off of mass transit so we had to strike now.”
He also says the newly purchased land completely transforms the university’s future opportunities.
“We have a general sense of some things that may happen here or there, but I think most importantly, and the thing that is most is exciting, is that it just opens up a whole realm of possibilities so that the university can grow according to the time and need and circumstances of this dynamic valley,” he says.
Holland says they’ll begin by moving some of their auxiliary operations and will start working on a new master plan as soon as possible. The @geneva development where UVU purchased the land will eventually also feature 2,000 housing units, a Larry H. Miller Megaplex, and a UTA intermodal hub.