I'm guessing your route was Cooper Street then a left on UTA Blvd or Mitchell Street then out Maverick Stadium, intramural fields, Clay Gould Ballpark and Allan Saxe Field via Mitchell Street or Greek Row Drive.
In that case, you definitely missed the heart of the campus. I'd out the Library Mall up against any in terms of tranquility, space and landscaping. The Second Street Mall / University Mall is a very nice pedestrian experience. Many of the older academic buildings are built in the form follows functions mentality and very pedantic. The new buildings however are much more striking and can actually add to the flair of the campus with the older buildings.
The two main flaws as I see them are lack of on-campus housing and fall activities. The first isn't a lack of numbers (5,000 or so), but the percentage is very low per total enrollment. The second is lack of fall activities. We have some unique campus traditions, but those are one-event deals. With just volleyball, it can make it tough to develop an athletic following throughout the semester.
Per your last point, the last true attempt was a student vote in 2004 that would have allocated a $2/hr student fee for football, W soccer and W golf. It was an outgoing SC president that spearheaded the measure. The then new incoming-president Spaniolo commissioned the Nienas report,
https://www.uta.edu/sportsexpansion/spor...ansion.pdf
In January 2005, he stated the University would not pursue a football program at that time, but rather embark on a major facilities improvement for athletics, starting with College Park Center. A lot of FB proponents were disappointed, but in all honesty, UTA had some of the worst athletic facilities in all of DI.
College Park Center, IMHO, is one of the best basketball venues in the country.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_Park_Center
Clay Gould Ballpark has received numerous improvements and is getting to be a mid-level DI venue.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clay_Gould_Ballpark
Allan Saxe is on the verge of becoming one of the better softball venues in DI, trailing only the most-attended programs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allan_Saxe_Field
Golf has recently debuted a new locker room in space vacated by the Athletic Department at the Gilstrap Center, which is underneath Maverick Stadium's west stands.
Really, all that is left is locker rooms onsite for the tennis teams at the UTA Tennis Center.
I think the department is moving in that direction, but making sure that the entire athletic program is standing strong. Women's golf debuts next academic year, making the first time a new sport will play at UTA since 1983. The pace is slow for a lot of us, but that's the way they are headed.