The University of Houston says it had about $708 million in deferred and planned maintenance needs in 2024.
The Houston Chronicle reports that a review of the university's annual deferred maintenance reports shows a 35% increase in the estimated amount from 2020 to 2024, growing from $524 million.
The figure tracks the projected costs necessary to tackle all planned and deferred maintenance over a five-year period, school officials said.
University officials have been able to allocate money for the most pressing issues each year, said David Oliver, associate vice chancellor and associate vice president of facilities and construction management.
"Are we able to deal with our critical needs? Yes," he said at a November Board of Regents meeting. "We are not in a doomsday situation."
The university only recently began including non-building infrastructure this year. The change added $118 million in needs, including utilities, storm sewers and water lines. Without the new category, the costs still rose to $590 million, almost 13% higher.
Houston has 163 buildings on campus, and the university has more than 200 classrooms that should be updated every 10 years, Oliver said. The average building is 38 years old.
Ten buildings in the 2024 report had deferred maintenance conditions in a "critical" range. If problems reach a certain point, school officials might consider tearing down the structures rather than renovating, Oliver said.
A handful were in the threshold he described, such as the College of Optometry's 48-year-old Armistead Building, which has "critical mechanical electrical and plumbing system needs," said Raymond Bartlett, senior vice chancellor and senior vice president for administration and finance.
Other common building issues include malfunctioning heating and air conditioning systems and problems with mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, Bartlett said.
The university has budgeted close to $66 million in deferred maintenance in the 2025 fiscal year, Oliver said.
Aside from inflation, the deferred maintenance numbers have grown because many universities constructed their buildings in waves, meaning they hit critical ages at the same time and cause an influx of maintenance needs all at once.
