The University of Arkansas Medical Sciences board of trustees on March 18 gave the green light for an $85 million orthopedic and sports medicine project to be developed in Little Rock, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports.
The 185,000-square-foot center will have up to 12 operating rooms and a limited number of patient beds, according to the report. Specialty clinics will include orthopedics, imaging, physical therapy, sports performance, research and education.
The university said the center will be used to manage and treat the Arizona Razorbacks.
"This is part and parcel of our agreement with UA-Fayetteville to manage the Razorback athletes and provide world-class orthopedic and sports medicine services in Northwest Arkansas," university Chancellor Cam Patterson, MD, told the Gazette. "The building will include all the facilities that are needed for a world-class sports medicine program."
The university said it hopes to break ground on the facility this year and open it by 2023.