Tag Archives: Reliant Stadium

Final Four weekend was pretty good for Houston

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll take it. Beyond the basketball court, the Houston economy appears to be the big winner of the Final Four. Across the city, several restaurants, bars and hotels reported big boosts in customers and cash flow, as an estimated 70,000 … Continue reading →

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Got some free time next January?

Posted on February 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Houston Super Bowl Committee wants you. As Houston prepares to host the Super Bowl next year, the Super Bowl host committee is seeking volunteers to pitch in for the big game. The committee seeks up to 10,000 volunteers and … Continue reading →

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Gene Locke is reportedly seeking the Commissioners Court nomination

Posted on February 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Please see update at the end of this post. There is new information at the bottom. Remember this? Harris County Judge Ed Emmett on Friday named Gene Locke, a former city attorney and mayoral candidate, to complete El Franco Lee’s … Continue reading →

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Who will pay for Super Bowl stadium improvements?

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Gotta say, I’m with Steve Radack on this one. If the NFL has its way, luxury boxes and club seats at NRG Stadium will undergo major upgrades at the expense of Harris County or its tenants before Super Bowl LI … Continue reading →

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ULI releases its Astrodome plan

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Feast your eyes on what the Urban Land Institute has in mind for the Astrodome. A final assessment by a group focused on sparing the Astrodome from the wrecking ball sets the price tag of reusing the iconic stadium at … Continue reading →

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The NFL would like us to spruce things up for the Super Bowl

Posted on March 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s only $50 million. What else do we have to spend it on? Before Houston hosts Super Bowl LI in 2017, NRG Stadium needs upgrades, including Wi-Fi installation and improvements to suites and club seats, according to Peter O’Reilly, the … Continue reading →

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More on the ULI Astrodome plan

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Tory Gattis: This was not a presentation of, “well, if the all the stars line up you might be able to make this work.” The theme was more, “this is an absolutely incredible opportunity and you would be fools … Continue reading →

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Urban Land Institute report on the Astrodome

Posted on December 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Is this, at long last, The Plan for the Astrodome? The iconic, yet aging Astrodome is worth saving from the wrecking ball and could find new life as a massive indoor park and green space, a national land use group … Continue reading →

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More on the Emmett Astrodome Park plan

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good to know that an architect thinks its feasible, but it will need more than that to become reality. Kinder Baumgardner, president of SWA Architects, the firm behind several public projects in Houston involving parks, said plenty of big-idea architectural … Continue reading →

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How about Astrodome Indoor Park?

Posted on August 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

County Judge Ed Emmett gives his vision for the Astrodome. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett on Tuesday proposed turning the Astrodome into “the world’s largest indoor park” and recreation area, a concept he said would honor the reason his predecessor … Continue reading →

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Astrodome Park proponents tout a survey showing people like the idea of Astrodome Park

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

How can you argue with that? The NRG Astrodome should be turned into a green space similar to Discovery Green downtown, said a majority of people recently surveyed about the future of the former sports arena. The survey, ordered by … Continue reading →

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On beautifying the city for the Super Bowl

Posted on August 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Chris Andrews has some thoughts about what Houston should and shouldn’t do in preparation for Super Bowl LI in 2017. Things More Important Than Beautification Projects to a Super Bowl Visitor As a sports fan, and through my own experience, … Continue reading →

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It takes time to park, too

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Atlantic Cities had an article a couple of weeks ago about light rail in Houston. It’s an overview written for people who aren’t from Houston, so other than the extremely high opinion of themselves of some rail opponents – … Continue reading →

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Astrodome preservationists make their case for historic landmark status

Posted on June 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Ted Powell and Cynthia Neely, the driving forces behind the push to designate the Astrodome as a national and state landmark, write an op-ed outlining their reasoning. As the Texans and the Rodeo view a third-party investor as not boosting, … Continue reading →

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Let’s talk about the Dome

Posted on May 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Time for a come to Judge Emmett meeting about everyone’s favorite historic yet threatened local landmark. Emmett said he wants to use the meeting next Wednesday to clear up any confusion surrounding last week’s unanimous vote by the state’s Antiquities … Continue reading →

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Appeals court revives MBIA lawsuit against Sports Authority

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. A lawsuit against the agency that pays the debt on Houston’s sports stadiums is back on following an appeals court ruling. Last April, a state district court judge ruled that a bond insurer could not sue … Continue reading →

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Rename this!

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. Reliant Park will soon be called NRG Park and Reliant Stadium NRG Stadium, after NRG Energy, the parent company of one of the largest electric retailers in the Houston area. County sources say NRG, which acquired Reliant’s retail operations … Continue reading →

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Back to private investors for the Dome

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Sure, why not? Commissioner El Franco Lee, whose Precinct 1 is home to the county-owned Dome, said Commissioners Court is “not under any time constraint” in deciding what to do with the vacant stadium. “The only constraint we’re under is … Continue reading →

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A lot of people wanted a piece of the Dome

Posted on November 10, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Unfortunately, most came away empty-handed. Wearing a floppy orange hat and an Astros baseball shirt, Dene Hofheinz grabbed a front-row seat for Saturday’s auction of iconic items from the domed stadium her father built more than four decades ago. She … Continue reading →

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Here comes the Dome renovation committee

Posted on September 14, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I was wondering when we’d see this. Reliant Park and Harris County officials on Thursday announced the launch of a campaign to garner voter support for a plan to redevelop the Astrodome, with Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and Precinct … Continue reading →

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Hoteliers for the Dome plan

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Count the Hotel & Lodging Association of Greater Houston among the supporters of the Astrodome renovation plan. Harris County Sports and Convention Corp. Chairman Edgar Colón, with back-up from Deputy Executive Director Kevin Hoffman, presented the agency’s vision for revamping … Continue reading →

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Interview with Willie Loston

Posted on June 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Willie Loston is the Executive Director of the Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation, which is the not-for-profit company that operates and maintains the public facilities at Reliant Park, including Reliant Stadium and the Astrodome. It was the HCSCC that … Continue reading →

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More on the New Dome Experience

Posted on June 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s subscription site story adds some more details to the news about the New Dome Experience. [Harris County Judge Ed] Emmett said that if the court signs off on the plan next week, it likely would ask the county … Continue reading →

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The New Dome Experience

Posted on June 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Behold: If the future of the Astrodome has been keeping you up at night, you’ll rest easy knowing that a major step was taken in favor of preservation at a board meeting on Wednesday afternoon: The Harris County Sports & … Continue reading →

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MBIA appeals lawsuit dismissal

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the brief that MBIA has filed with the First District Court of Appeals to overturn the dismissal of their lawsuit against the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority and the Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation. The issues presented for review … Continue reading →

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The Texans and the Rodeo will have their say on the fate of the Dome

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There’s this little matter of their lease agreement to deal with. Five years ago, Harris County appeared on the brink of striking a deal with a group of entrepreneurs to turn the Astrodome into a 1,300-room hotel and convention center, … Continue reading →

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It’s about use, not just sentiment

Posted on June 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

NYT reporter Jere Longman, who hails from Houston, penned a love letter to the Astrodome after hearing about its possible impending demise. So it was despairing to hear that the vacant Astrodome might be torn down and its site paved … Continue reading →

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Does the Super Bowl doom the Dome?

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Texican ponders what the announcement about Houston landing Super Bowl LI means for everyone’s favorite unused arena. So what does this mean for our Dome? A parking garage would be an ignoble end for the Dome, though I am … Continue reading →

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Florida’s failure to be insane is our gain

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good news if you’re rooting for Houston to host Super Bowl LI. Houston’s bid for Super Bowl LI received a major boost Friday when Florida lawmakers ended a 60-day legislative session without approving a plan that would have provided a … Continue reading →

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MBIA lawsuit against Sports Authority dismissed

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I haven’t seen a story about this in the print edition for whatever the reason. A state district court judge on Tuesday ruled that the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority cannot be sued by the company that insures the $1 billion … Continue reading →

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A STEM vision for the Astrodome

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Tory Gattis has an idea for what to do with the Astrodome. Where can America’s kids go to be inspired toward careers in our country’s most crucial need: science, technology, engineering and math (aka STEM)? Something far beyond their little … Continue reading →

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Feeling good about the Super Bowl bid

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The city of Houston has submitted its bid to host Super Bowl LI in 2017, and they feel pretty good about their chances. Houston’s competition will be San Francisco or Miami – the city that fails to get the coveted … Continue reading →

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County disputes cheaper Dome demolition price tag

Posted on March 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s on. Harris County officials on Thursday disputed an estimate released this week showing it would cost $29 million to implode the vacant Reliant Astrodome and build a 1,600-space parking lot in two and a half years. The figure, calculated … Continue reading →

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Maybe it wouldn’t be so expensive to demolish the Dome after all

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, look! It’s another What To Do With The Astrodome study! Woo hoo! The Houston Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo have commissioned a study showing it would cost $29 million to demolish the 48-year-old stadium and build … Continue reading →

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