tigereye Posted July 10, 2018 Share Posted July 10, 2018 On 12/11/2017 at 8:00 PM, tigereye said: I believe Crane’s end game is similar to the deal the Rockies just got. As part of a deal to extend their Coors Field lease for 30 years, they’ll get to develop a block across the street with a team HOF, restaurant, retail, entertainment & residential components. It’s similar to what the Cardinals have done with Ballpark Village, the Braves with The Battery, and what the Rangers will be doing with Texas Live. Note: The Rockies will be doing this all on one city block, which is similar in size to block 161 that Crane has here. Buried in the Chronicle’s article is the first mention of a ballpark village in downtown. The reroute is brought up but Crane already owns property on block 161. Quote Rerouting U.S. 59 and Interstate 45 below grade on the stadium's southwest side could open areas for a possible ballpark village, Ryan indicated. https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/Astros-plans-future-improvements-Minute-Maid-Park-13061261.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 10, 2018 Share Posted July 10, 2018 So in 50 years if/when they have to tear down and rebuild, most likely there won’t be available land. I wonder what they’ll do, where they’ll go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pablog Posted July 10, 2018 Share Posted July 10, 2018 3 minutes ago, lockmat said: So in 50 years if/when they have to tear down and rebuild, most likely there won’t be available land. I wonder what they’ll do, where they’ll go. We don’t have to tear down and rebuild... look at Fenway and Wrigley. I’m hoping Minute Maid becomes like those historic stadiums one day. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 10, 2018 Share Posted July 10, 2018 13 minutes ago, pablog said: We don’t have to tear down and rebuild... look at Fenway and Wrigley. I’m hoping Minute Maid becomes like those historic stadiums one day. I hope you’re right. Primarily because I don’t want tax payers paying for another one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigereye Posted July 10, 2018 Share Posted July 10, 2018 8 hours ago, lockmat said: So in 50 years if/when they have to tear down and rebuild, most likely there won’t be available land. I wonder what they’ll do, where they’ll go. No where. As previously stated, keep Minute Maid and renovate. Or if a new ballpark is a must, since there might not be a better site available by then, demolish MMP and build a new ballpark on the same site. (which would require the Astros playing elsewhere during construction. Tottenham & Chelsea are utilizing these methods to create their new stadiums on the same site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbanize713 Posted July 11, 2018 Share Posted July 11, 2018 First let me say I love the Astros and Minute Maid Park. With that said, if they could demolish Yankee stadium they can demolish anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 (edited) On 7/10/2018 at 0:01 AM, pablog said: We don’t have to tear down and rebuild... look at Fenway and Wrigley. I’m hoping Minute Maid becomes like those historic stadiums one day. I am by no means a baseball stadium expert, but I've been to a few. MMP has a feel when you walk through the doors (especially onto the concourse behind left field). It's a hum, and it feels like baseball. I got that feel at Wrigley, I got that feel at a few other parks I've been to. The Astrodome never had that. It doesn't feel like a 20 year old stadium, and I hope it continues to feel like baseball. On 7/10/2018 at 0:16 AM, lockmat said: I hope you’re right. Primarily because I don’t want tax payers paying for another one. I too would be quite happy to not have to pay for another stadium. That being said, there is an amount of money that these teams bring into the city. traveling fans bring money and pay taxes. the stadium naming rights is worth millions (Minute Maid paid $100 million for their 20 year deal when Enron flaked). not to mention civic recognition. I wonder how many people decided to move to a new town because of what they saw of the town through one of the sporting events they attended? I don't like it, and I will grumble, but the economics make sense. So long as the team doesn't get you to pay for upgrades on the current stadium, then leaves 5 years later because they really wanted a new stadium. - I still don't understand why anyone who lives in Houston would ever cheer for the Titans. Edited October 2, 2018 by samagon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkultra25 Posted October 3, 2018 Share Posted October 3, 2018 On 10/2/2018 at 1:04 PM, samagon said: I still don't understand why anyone who lives in Houston would ever cheer for the Titans. Is that really a thing? Given how widely despised Bud Adams was for uprooting the Oilers and decamping to Tennessee, I can't imagine any real Houstonian doing anything other than spitting whenever they speak of the Titans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted October 5, 2018 Share Posted October 5, 2018 On 10/3/2018 at 3:58 PM, mkultra25 said: Is that really a thing? Given how widely despised Bud Adams was for uprooting the Oilers and decamping to Tennessee, I can't imagine any real Houstonian doing anything other than spitting whenever they speak of the Titans. it was, I think most fans are now texans fans. I had friends who cheered for the titans, their explanation was that the players were still oilers. It was a silly excuse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 On 10/5/2018 at 9:46 AM, samagon said: it was, I think most fans are now texans fans. I had friends who cheered for the titans, their explanation was that the players were still oilers. It was a silly excuse. I rooted for the Titans until we have got the Texans, but if I'm honest, there's still a tiny piece of my heart that is still with the Titans, very tiny. I was a kid when they moved and Bud Adams didn't mean anything to me, I was a fan of the team. If you're best friend moves to another city do you stop being their friend? 'course not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 13 minutes ago, lockmat said: I rooted for the Titans until we have got the Texans, but if I'm honest, there's still a tiny piece of my heart that is still with the Titans, very tiny. I was a kid when they moved and Bud Adams didn't mean anything to me, I was a fan of the team. If you're best friend moves to another city do you stop being their friend? 'course not. I think that is the difference. I was not an adult, I was only barely out of high school. what I saw was the guy threw a tantrum because he didn't get what he wanted and took his ball to a different town. Do I want to maintain that relationship? Nah. what I think most adults saw was that not only did he throw a tantrum, but he had just held the city hostage to make major improvements to his stadium that didn't seem to benefit anyone else. when they said no, he decided to take his ball to another town. I guess some people were okay maintaining that relationship though. anyway, 'stros moving on to the next series woowoo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkultra25 Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 3 hours ago, samagon said: I think that is the difference. I was not an adult, I was only barely out of high school. what I saw was the guy threw a tantrum because he didn't get what he wanted and took his ball to a different town. Do I want to maintain that relationship? Nah. what I think most adults saw was that not only did he throw a tantrum, but he had just held the city hostage to make major improvements to his stadium that didn't seem to benefit anyone else. when they said no, he decided to take his ball to another town. I guess some people were okay maintaining that relationship though. anyway, 'stros moving on to the next series woowoo! Houston: Bud Adams moves the Oilers to Tennessee, and a lot of people remain fans. Baltimore: Bob Irsay moves the Colts to Indianapolis, and, well, people are still steamed many years after the fact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigereye Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 More renovations coming, this time to righ field second deck. https://ballparkdigest.com/2019/08/02/minute-maid-park-upgrades-on-tap/ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 Astros Throw another combined No Hitter using our 2 newest pitchers. https://www.espn.com/espn/now?nowId=1-27317700 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoustonMidtown Posted August 14, 2019 Share Posted August 14, 2019 (edited) I can't find anything to link yet, but Channel 13 just announced the Astros have bought the land adjacent to Minute Maid park (where the blue house and train are currently located) for $17 million. They didn't say what is was going to be used for - it seemed like their teleprompter went off or something as they kind of babbled the last few comments - they did mention Hilton Americas was involved New topic here: Edited August 15, 2019 by HoustonMidtown 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted September 1, 2019 Share Posted September 1, 2019 (edited) I was fortunate to get the opportunity to watch my second "NO HITTER" this year. Love the Astros. Edited September 2, 2019 by hindesky 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Found a temporary wifi tower for the World Series. I'm sure there are others but this was in the huge surface lot south of Minute Maid and north of the Marriott Marquis. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigereye Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 (edited) On 8/14/2019 at 6:20 PM, HoustonMidtown said: I can't find anything to link yet, but Channel 13 just announced the Astros have bought the land adjacent to Minute Maid park (where the blue house and train are currently located) for $17 million. They didn't say what is was going to be used for - it seemed like their teleprompter went off or something as they kind of babbled the last few comments - they did mention Hilton Americas was involved New topic here: Our local media is slow. Culture Map first mentioned Crane owning block 161 back in 2016. On 11/4/2017 at 10:40 AM, tigereye said: Reminder that Crane owns 2 buildings on Texas south of Home Plate (probably the bars on block 161. With Nau Center for Heritage dead, could this be the spot? http://houston.culturemap.com/news/restaurants-bars/03-30-16-astros-owner-gives-the-inside-scoop-on-his-two-new-restaurants-near-minute-maid-park/#slide=0 When the MMP lease was renewed in 2018, it was again mentioned as being possibly earmarked for ballpark village plans. On 7/9/2018 at 11:34 PM, tigereye said: Buried in the Chronicle’s article is the first mention of a ballpark village in downtown. The reroute is brought up but Crane already owns property on block 161. https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/Astros-plans-future-improvements-Minute-Maid-Park-13061261.php Astros may now own the halfway house site currently being bulldozed. To recap: Stros now have land outside Home Plate and Center Field gates. On 12/17/2019 at 12:27 PM, ekdrm2d1 said: A Cherry representative said Minute Maid is the new owner. I’m not sure if that means the Harris County Houston Sports Authority or Crane and the team. Edited December 29, 2019 by tigereye 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoustonMidtown Posted July 3, 2020 Share Posted July 3, 2020 "Spring" training !!!! Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 Summer training. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttuchris Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 I am sure the Astros are focused on revenue generating improvements, but the park has needed a paint job for years and several of the windows in Union Station are rotting. I wonder if they have any plans for general maintenance. I would hate to see a historic structure fall into disrepair. Does the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority require any minimum repairs from the Astros? I took other similar pictures, but they were too large to load. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbates2 Posted July 29, 2020 Share Posted July 29, 2020 I always feel like the Union Station portion of Minute Maid is underutilized for such a cool space. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougarpad Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 7/28/2020 at 9:41 AM, ttuchris said: I am sure the Astros are focused on revenue generating improvements, but the park has needed a paint job for years and several of the windows in Union Station are rotting. I wonder if they have any plans for general maintenance. I would hate to see a historic structure fall into disrepair. Does the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority require any minimum repairs from the Astros? I took other similar pictures, but they were too large to load. They really should try to incorporate a little blue in the building paint scheme since it is the team colors. I also think it be neat if they made the outfield seats blue or at least some portion of the seating blue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbates2 Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 Orange. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted April 3, 2021 Share Posted April 3, 2021 I could see guys hosing down the upper deck seats behind first base. Looks like they might have done some work to the Phillips 66 homer run count sign. All in preparation for Thurs. nights opener against the Oakland A's. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkultra25 Posted April 4, 2021 Share Posted April 4, 2021 18 hours ago, hindesky said: Looks like they might have done some work to the Phillips 66 homer run count sign. All in preparation for Thurs. nights opener against the Oakland A's. Hopefully they've given it a tune-up, because it's gonna get a workout if the boys continue the beatdown they've put on the A's in the first three games of the opening series in Oakland. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted November 5, 2021 Share Posted November 5, 2021 Astros owner Jim Crane talks planned expansion surrounding Minute Maid Park Danielle Lerner, Staff writer Nov. 5, 2021 Astros owner Jim Crane said Friday that construction on a ballpark entertainment district surrounding Minute Maid Park is set to begin “probably within 12 months.” The Astros’ lease with Minute Maid Park runs through 2050, and in 2019 the club purchased 1.738 acres of land surrounding the downtown ballpark with intentions of building a mixed-use development. Crane on Friday referenced the over $100 million the team has spent renovating areas like the Gallagher Club and Ultra Club inside the stadium, and said the next goal is to create an entertainment district in the area around Union Station and the now-closed Home Plate Bar & Grill. The Texas Department of Transportation’s plan to reroute a portion U.S. 59 and Interstate 45 underground on the stadium’s southwest side, part of the North Houston Highway Improvement Project, will also clear room for the Astros to build. “That whole area will turn into an entertainment area like a ballpark village like the Atlanta Braves, like the Cardinals, and some of the other teams,” Crane said. “We think that will bring a lot of people downtown. The area continues to improve around us. When we came in there was an old boarded up building where those apartments are. So I think this is going to be the spot. If they get the freeway done and it goes underground that’s going to be a park, so this area’s going to be a primetime area down the road for everybody to come down and enjoy the ballpark. And I think a lot more people are moving downtown which also helps us. So everything looks good, on the bright side.” https://www.houstonchronicle.com/texas-sports-nation/astros/article/Astros-Jim-Crane-expansion-Minute-Maid-Park-16596664.php 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nate4l1f3 Posted April 6, 2022 Share Posted April 6, 2022 5 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted September 23, 2022 Share Posted September 23, 2022 Construction fence and netting. They took down all the trees in this northwest corner of the stadium block. Anyone know what they have planned for this area? 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted September 23, 2022 Share Posted September 23, 2022 (edited) I'm not sure this permit is what is being done here but I couldn't find any other permits for Minute Maid. Edited September 23, 2022 by hindesky 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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