WTAMU announces building of new $30 million AgriLife Research facility after Amarillo move

Brianna Maestas, Amarillo Globe-News
·3 min read

West Texas A&M University has announced the building of a new, $30 million AgriLife Research facility on its campus after Texas A&M AgriLife announced the official move of the Amarillo facilities to Canyon. The announcement was made during a news conference Wednesday morning in the Texas A&M Veterinary Education, Research and Outreach (VERO) building located on WT's campus.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center of Amarillo will move to Canyon's Russel Long Boulevard to create a central location for agricultural research, education and outreach.

"Walter and I had a dream about this half a decade or more ago to build the best agriculture complex to exist in the state, and we've just about done it," said WTAMU Chancellor John Sharp.

Funding for the $30 million center was approved May 19 by the Texas A&M University Board of Regents. Of the total, $20 million will come from the Permanent University Fund established by the State of Texas, and the remaining $10 million will be funded by the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.

The new facility will be constructed to the northeast of the Charles W. “Doc” Graham ’53 DVM, The Texas A&M University System Center, which encompasses VERO and the Charles W. Graham DVM Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.

WT President Walter V. Wendler spoke during the conference about how far Russell Long Boulevard has come to become the university's "center of gravity" and will continue to grow with the new AgriLife facility's addition along the strip of university road.

"I know of no other university in the nation that has this kind of mission. We are going to be a research university that focuses solely on the challenges that we face here in the Texas Panhandle and South Plains ... We are going to do our work and graduate programs in a way that enhances the communities and the people that call the Panhandle home," Wendler said.

Dr. Walter Wendler, president of West Texas A&M University, talks about the impact of being a system regional institution during the announcement of the relocation of the AgriLife Research and Extension Center from Amarillo, to a new facility in Canyon to be built along Russell Long Boulevard, at a news conference Wednesday morning on campus.
Dr. Walter Wendler, president of West Texas A&M University, talks about the impact of being a system regional institution during the announcement of the relocation of the AgriLife Research and Extension Center from Amarillo, to a new facility in Canyon to be built along Russell Long Boulevard, at a news conference Wednesday morning on campus.

According to Sharp, the groundbreaking has yet to be determined, but construction for the new facility is expected to be complete in the spring semester of 2024. In addition to the new facility, it will also house approximately 60 employees working for AgriLife Research and AgriLife Extension Service agencies.

"Students want high tech; the term 'old agriculture' isn't the case anymore. Agriculture is new, it is fresh, it is high tech. It involves a lot of big data, and we are excited about the opportunities to collaborate not only with the College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, but also with the College of Engineering at WTAMU," said Dr. Brent Auvermann, center director for the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center of Amarillo.

As mentioned by Auvermann, the new building's location will allow for optimal collaboration with WT’s Agricultural Sciences Complex and affiliates, which includes the Happy State Bank Academic and Research building, the Caviness Meat Science and Innovation Center, the Piehl-Schaeffer Pavilion and the Bain Event Center; the VERO building; and the Charles W. Graham DVM Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.

Dr. Cliff Lamb, director of AgriLife Research said in a news release: “Here in the Panhandle, we look forward to expanding our research programs in beef cattle, small grains, environmental quality, natural resources, pest management, crop systems and bioenergy.”

According to Lamb, AgriLife Research has led the nation in six of the past eight years in agricultural research expenditures, with more than $223.5 million for fiscal year 2021. With headquarters in College Station, it has 13 centers around the state that house both AgriLife Research and AgriLife Extension personnel who work to support the districts and regions. Annually, the Texas A&M AgriLife center at Amarillo has hosted more than 3,500 individuals who have completed nearly 11,000 contact hours of education.

"If you're a kid that wants to major in agriculture, it won't really make any sense passing up this opportunity to get this quality education with these resources here with this new facility at WT," Sharp said

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Texas A&M AgriLife Research moves to WT with new $30 million facility