The Abandoned Astrodome And Its Future

[West Timer]

Keep trying. No one's buying your re-characterization of your "mischaracterization".

 

1. It's ridiculous to destroy a historic landmark because of a little rust. The Astrodome's "bones" are just fine.

 

2. The public has made it clear that they don't want the dome destroyed. Find me a current poll that says otherwise. I can't find anything showing public support in favor of destruction at all. Not voting yes to spend millions to fund someone's idea back in 2013 to repurpose the dome is NOT the same thing as voting to destroy it. Those are 2 SEPARATE issues. Get a vote that shows the majority in favor of demoing the dome and then we'll talk. Until then, you're just pushing your own personal "interpretation" of what the public "has made clear". 

 

3. Boo Hoo. The Texans and the HLSR should have thought about the dome's close proximity before they built NRG. The Dome was there first. The Texans and the HLSR are not hurting for business or money. They can just deal with the Historical Landmark they decided to build next to. Demolition was NEVER part of the deal.

 

4. Why does anyone HAVE to add a business to NRG park? Isn't their any other place left in Houston to set up a business that DOES NOT require demolishing Houston's biggest and most famous historic landmark? I think they can find one if they try. Go tear down Greenspoint Mall or something. 

 

5. There is another alternative. Leave the dome alone until the conditions are right to repurpose it. You know, just keep doing what we've been doing for the last 20 years. I don't see that anyone in this city is hurting because the Astrodome looks the way it looks. Houston's still thriving. People are still working. The Texans are still packing them in. The Rodeo still smells like 💩. There isn't any panic in the streets. I'm all in favor of improving it. But I can live with it just as it is until it reaches it's untapped potential. HOWEVER LONG IT TAKES!

 

Imagine seeing the Historic Landmark Astrodome completely revitalized, appreciated and turned into a year round tourist attraction. It's not that hard. And then going to Hermann park or Memorial Park to appreciate the environment. I'm sure a revitalized Astrodome wouldn't hurt Houston's ugly reputation any more that some stink tank built in the middle of a gargantuan sized parking lot.

 

Repurposing an already existing structure into something useful and profitable is just about best bang you can get for your buck. No demolition cost. No rebuilding cost. EVERYBODY WINS! Except those who are in favor of destruction for the sake of destruction. Those guys can go jump in a retention pond.

Edited February 19, 2020 by West Timer

[Reefmonkey]

Well, I was happy to engage in civil, mature discourse on the subject and assume good faith, but  seems like it's just too emotional an issue for some other people to approach objectively. Oh well.

Edited February 19, 2020 by Reefmonkey

[Houston19514]

On 2/17/2020 at 10:07 AM, Reefmonkey said:

 

To be honest, I'm not sure I trust the county on this, this is the same county that ignored the will of the voters, and when they did, announced a $105 million plan that didn't include the cost to replace the air conditioning system, which is estimated to be in the tens of millions. It seems too much of a pet project for Emmett, who traveled overseas on Harris County taxpayers' dime to go see an abandoned zepplin terminal that had been turned into a rainforest and water park (neither of which it would make sense to do for the Astrodome), to be objective and transparent about the real condition of the Astrodome. I wouldn't put it past the county under Emmett to downplay problems with the Astrodome at all.

 

 

 

I believe the claim they traveled overseas on Harris County taxpayers' dime is false.  It was reported at the time that Emmet used campaign funds to pay for the trip.

[Reefmonkey]

1 hour ago, Houston19514 said:

 

I believe the claim they traveled overseas on Harris County taxpayers' dime is false.  It was reported at the time that Emmet used campaign funds to pay for the trip.

 Looking into it,  appears you are correct, Emmett's camp did claim the trip was paid with campaign funds.  I wonder if that's what his Harris County Republican campaign donors expected their money to be spent on? And was traveling to other countries to visit water parks what we elected him to do? Did he use personal vacation time, or was he "on the job" when he was over there? I always took a dim view of Lee Brown's overseas trips; local elected officials are elected to govern locally, they have no foreign policy role and foreign trips should be unnecessary. If an elected official wants to use their private money and their vacation time to take a vacation, and tack on a busman's holiday to see something they think might apply to their job, that's their prerogative. When they spend money other than their personal money, it's pretty obvious that's not how they see the trip.

Edited February 20, 2020 by Reefmonkey

[West Timer]

@Reefermonkey - I'll admit that I'm emotional over NEEDLESS waste. I don't think that is a bad thing either considering that emotion is probably one of the things keeping Houston's most well known historic landmark from being needlessly or recklessly torn down. Until the dome starts generating some kind of revenue, it's always going to have a target on it's back. Emotion and sentiment are powerful weapons when it comes to preserving historic landmarks.

 

But so is logic. It makes no sense to destroy a one of a kind building that has so much unique potential when it isn't hurting anyone or costing anyone any more than a percentage of a cent in taxes every year to keep it standing. According to this source, maintenance cost run to $170,000 annually, there are over 4.653 million people in Harris County. That comes out to 0.03653556845046 cents per person, per year vs. $40,000,000 or so to tear it down. I'll be happy to pay for your share of the Astrodome's upkeep for the rest of your life. Assuming you are 10 years old and live to be 100. That means I owe you 3.2 cents. Where do I send the check?

 

You haven't convinced me at all that removing the dome will improve the local economy, our quality of life, NRG Park, the city of Houston or ANYONE in the world.  I'm not even sure your fight is actually against the dome anymore or if its just to simply win a HAIF pissing contest. But it doesn't matter. I want to thank you for giving me an opportunity to make my case for saving the dome and preserving an important part of Houston history. 

Edited February 21, 2020 by West Timer

[EastEndHeritage]

36 minutes ago, West Timer said:

If it happened to AstroWorld, it can happen anywhere. 😭

Apparently, not to the Astrodome. I guess some people cant get over some concrete. It is an eyesore IMHO.

[Texasota]

You think the astrodome is more of an eyesore than the acres of parking lots around it?

[EastEndHeritage]

5 minutes ago, Texasota said:

You think the astrodome is more of an eyesore than the acres of parking lots around it?

The hole area is an eyesore, but I singled out the Astrodome since a lot people like to cry about it. It is beyond me why the area around our "flagship" stadium has not been cleaned up. We have some major world events coming in the next few years, including the Wold Cup, and the area looks decrepit it.

 

To me Houston is like the quintessential undiscovered beautiful prom queen. The Astrowold and of rest of the NRG complex is like the orthodontic headgear before the makeover.

[Texasota]

People "like to cry about it" because, unlike those parking lots, it has emotional, architectural, and cultural significance. For someone with the word "heritage" in your handle you're taking a bizarrely obtuse position on a building a lot of people care about.

[EastEndHeritage]

2 hours ago, Texasota said:

People "like to cry about it" because, unlike those parking lots, it has emotional, architectural, and cultural significance. For someone with the word "heritage" in your handle you're taking a bizarrely obtuse position on a building a lot of people care about.

The country as whole has been destroying "emotional, architectural, and cultural significance" for centuries. Perhaps just not the ones you care about. I recognize the achievements made when building the dome, but those were short lived and within a couple of decades the building was totally outdated and surpassed by other domes. The Astrodome is no Roman Colosseum. Taxpayer money should not subsidizing the whim of a former County Judge.

[West Timer]

Whim my butt. The majority of Houstonians don't want Astrodome torn down.

[Texasota]

1 hour ago, EastEndHeritage said:

The country as whole has been destroying "emotional, architectural, and cultural significance" for centuries. Perhaps just not the ones you care about. I recognize the achievements made when building the dome, but those were short lived and within a couple of decades the building was totally outdated and surpassed by other domes. The Astrodome is no Roman Colosseum. Taxpayer money should not subsidizing the whim of a former County Judge.

 

What a weird response. Do you think that people who want to see the Astrodome maintained only care about that one building? A lot of places I care about have been destroyed; does that mean I shouldn't advocate for the places that still stand? 

 

And actually, the Astrodome kind of is the Roman Colosseum, or at least the closest we are going to get to a contemporary equivalent. Technology advances a lot faster now, but how long has it been since the Colosseum was used for its intended purpose? 

 

As to your "taxpayer money" complaint: part of the reason the Astrodome is still standing is that it would have cost hundreds of millions of dollars to tear it down. Taxpayer money was going to be used one way or another, and I for one would rather see a building that was built with taxpayer money in the first place maintained than torn down and replaced with surface parking (which would of course also have to be maintained!) 

[EastEndHeritage]

11 minutes ago, Texasota said:

As to your "taxpayer money" complaint: part of the reason the Astrodome is still standing is that it would have cost hundreds of millions of dollars to tear it down. Taxpayer money was going to be used one way or another, and I for one would rather see a building that was built with taxpayer money in the first place maintained than torn down and replaced with surface parking (which would of course also have to be maintained!) 

Yeah, right! That was Judge Ed Emmett hyper-inflating demo cost in order to justify keeping it as his pet project. Surface parking at least will bring in some revenue.

[EastEndHeritage]

59 minutes ago, West Timer said:

Whim my butt. The majority of Houstonians don't want Astrodome torn down.

I am willing to bet my retirement savings that actual Houston residents will vote to tear it down if presented with an actual cost-benefit analysis. This is probably a similar situation with the same people outside Houston wanting more highways at any cost so they can keep their commutes to the 'burbs easy for them at the expense of actual Houstonians.

[Houston19514]

1 hour ago, EastEndHeritage said:

I am willing to bet my retirement savings that actual Houston residents will vote to tear it down if presented with an actual cost-benefit analysis. This is probably a similar situation with the same people outside Houston wanting more highways at any cost so they can keep their commutes to the 'burbs easy for them at the expense of actual Houstonians.

 

FWIW, it would be Harris County residents that matter, not just Houston residents.

[West Timer]

3 hours ago, EastEndHeritage said:

I am willing to bet my retirement savings that actual Houston residents will vote to tear it down if presented with an actual cost-benefit analysis. This is probably a similar situation with the same people outside Houston wanting more highways at any cost so they can keep their commutes to the 'burbs easy for them at the expense of actual Houstonians.

Fine. In the meantime, just keep paying your taxes. The Astrodome's not going anywhere. I'll bet your retirement that the Astrodome will be standing long after you will.

[samagon]

and here I thought there would be some significant information regarding the Buffalo Bayou master plan.

 

carry on.

 

oh, and save the dome. since the name astrodome has a spacy theme to it, maybe they should talk one of the cities that is housing a space shuttle into moving it to Houston along with a pair of solid rocket boosters, and a fuel tank. I bet they could erect the launch platform inside the dome and use it as a huge science museum. maybe even they could move some of the rockets from space center Houston into this huge science museum. it should be noted that the space shuttle kitted out for launch was 184' tall. the tallest tower used to hold the roof in place during construction of the dome was over 200' tall. this would give plenty of room once they reinforced the floor to hold the space shuttle, and all accouterments. 

 

maybe even they could project some wicket huge planetarium style shows onto the ceiling? can someone talk to the judge and put me forth as a project planner for this new science museum?

 

don't we have a new county judge? you'd think if it was some pet project of county judge #1 that the new county judge would have taken aim at it right away as a cost saving measure?

 

someone else can figure out how to get all that shit in the dome, I'm an ideas man, not an engineer.

Edited June 22, 2020 by samagon

[EastEndHeritage]

28 minutes ago, samagon said:

don't we have a new county judge? you'd think if it was some pet project of county judge #1 that the new county judge would have taken aim at it right away as a cost saving measure?

We do, fortunately! Judge Hildalgo immediately stopped throwing good money after bad. She is following the will of the people in Houston as stated in prior referendum instead of following some personal nostalgia just because daddy took them to a ball game in 1960's.

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2013/11/06/houston-astrodome-likely-to-be-demolished/3452349/

 

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/ASTRODOME-13565990.php

 

I like your proposal if private funds can be raised for it. As for the name, just rename reliant stadium or whatever that will eventually replace it, Astrodome. See Yankee Stadium or Wimbledon Stadium.

 

And to tie this to the Bayou, I rather Houston and Harris county spend the $105 million allocated to the Astrodome building more paths and beautifying the Bayou, specially on the East side of downtown, where more people can actually enjoy it instead of spending on intangible nostalgia.

Edited June 22, 2020 by EastEndHeritage

[Texasota]

"intangible nostalgia"

 

It is a building. It couldn't be *more* tangible.

[samagon]

2 hours ago, EastEndHeritage said:

We do, fortunately! Judge Hildalgo immediately stopped throwing good money after bad. She is following the will of the people in Houston as stated in prior referendum instead of following some personal nostalgia just because daddy took them to a ball game in 1960's.

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2013/11/06/houston-astrodome-likely-to-be-demolished/3452349/

 

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/ASTRODOME-13565990.php

 

I like your proposal if private funds can be raised for it. As for the name, just rename reliant stadium or whatever that will eventually replace it, Astrodome. See Yankee Stadium or Wimbledon Stadium.

 

And to tie this to the Bayou, I rather Houston and Harris county spend the $105 million allocated to the Astrodome building more paths and beautifying the Bayou, specially on the East side of downtown, where more people can actually enjoy it instead of spending on intangible nostalgia.

 

for your reference, Lina Hidalgo was voted into office in 2018.

 

I see two articles.

 

one article from 2013, which was 5 years before she held office. that article discusses that voters did not approve a project to turn the 'dome into a convention hall. I don't see any conceivable way that this could in any way remotely be related to how our current judge is distributing funds?

 

the other article was shortly after she took control of office in January 2019. in this article she was questioning the costs of redevelopment. I suspect (hope) she questioned the costs of everything she has to manage!

 

did you maybe link the wrong articles?

[EastEndHeritage]

10 minutes ago, samagon said:

 

for your reference, Lina Hidalgo was voted into office in 2018.

 

I see two articles.

 

one article from 2013, which was 5 years before she held office. that article discusses that voters did not approve a project to turn the 'dome into a convention hall. I don't see any conceivable way that this could in any way remotely be related to how our current judge is distributing funds?

 

the other article was shortly after she took control of office in January 2019. in this article she was questioning the costs of redevelopment. I suspect (hope) she questioned the costs of everything she has to manage!

 

did you maybe link the wrong articles?

I am well aware when Judge Hidalgo was voted into and when she assumed office. Article 1 show Houstonians do not want to spend money on the Astrodome as proven by the 2013 referendum since yourself and others keep arguing otherwise. At the time, Judge Emmet, could not take the loss on his pet project and changed direction to landmarked the dome instead in order to make it more difficult to demolish.

 

As you questioned why the new judge had not reversed course from the prior admin, well article #2 shows the new judge did so within days of taking office. So you are now arguing against your own argument. Thankfully this nonsense spending on the dome remains stopped. I know facts are at a premium nowadays, but come on.

[samagon]

48 minutes ago, EastEndHeritage said:

I am well aware when Judge Hidalgo was voted into and when she assumed office. Article 1 show Houstonians do not want to spend money on the Astrodome as proven by the 2013 referendum since yourself and others keep arguing otherwise. At the time, Judge Emmet, could not take the loss on his pet project and changed direction to landmarked the dome instead in order to make it more difficult to demolish.

 

demolish is not in the text of the first document anywhere. demolish was not part of the vote anywhere.

 

the 2013 vote was very clear and specific to spend money making a new convention space. this vote did not succeed. period. end of story.

 

voting "no" for making a convention space is not a "yes" for demolition. there is no correlation between the two.

 

48 minutes ago, EastEndHeritage said:

As you questioned why the new judge had not reversed course from the prior admin, well article #2 shows the new judge did so within days of taking office. So you are now arguing against your own argument. Thankfully this nonsense spending on the dome remains stopped. I know facts are at a premium nowadays, but come on.

 

this is the text from the article in the entirety:

Quote

 

As work continues on the initial stages of preparing the Astrodome for its new life as a parking and events venue, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo raised questions last week about the costs associated with redeveloping the former sports stadium.

 

Harris County’s new judge, who recently toured the property with officials from NRG Park, said she learned that the $105 million the county allocated to the redevelopment project did not include air conditioning.

 

“I’m looking to make sure the current plan is fiscally responsible and that it will get us to a point where the Astrodome is self-sustaining,” she said in an interview on Houston Public Media’s “Houston Matters.”

 

 

that's it. nothing mention of canceling the project.

 

here is another article, much more recent, but other than giving a detailed accounting that maybe you should brush up on before discussing the subject further, it says nothing about reversing course.

https://www.houstoniamag.com/news-and-city-life/2019/03/whats-going-on-with-the-astrodome

 

Quote

More waiting! “This is really on the back burner for us at this juncture,” Kiran Khalid, Hidalgo’s director of communications, told Houstonia. She explained that county priorities currently include how to best disburse last year’s $2.5 billion Harvey flood bond to affected communities, and the criminal-justice reform proposals Hidalgo campaigned on. The county is “still working through the plan details” with project managers to determine how to approach the Dome’s air-conditioning issue, among others. The path forward remains hazy, in other words, but Khalid made one thing quite clear: “Speculating on what will happen with the Astrodome and when is not at the top of mind for us.”

 

maybe you should really focus in on the bolded part of the quote, let it sink in, and then go back and look at what I wrote.

 

4 hours ago, samagon said:

don't we have a new county judge? you'd think if it was some pet project of county judge #1 that the new county judge would have taken aim at it right away as a cost saving measure?

 

my statement is not contradictory with what her office has stated.

 

setting other projects at a higher priority is not taking aim as a cost saving measure. it is in fact, the exact opposite. she is ignoring it, not canceling it, the money is still approved for the task, it's just not being used yet.

 

she very well might want to reverse course, as you say, and cancel those plans, then demolish the dome, but that's not what her office is saying. furthermore, with the stadium being on the Texas Historical Commission, any hopes of seeing it demolished are pretty much a pipe dream, if push came to shove, other tax dollars from other locations would be used to keep the dome.

[HoustonBoy]

My apologies for reviving this thread, but I just realized how great of a venue the Astrodome would be for Houston-area esports. Reviving what was once the the face of classic sports into the new center for future-oriented esports would be an incredible full circle achievement. This entire area could become a sports/LA Live area with residential, hotel, sporting and convention amenities. What are y’all’s opinions?
https://www.bisnow.com/houston/news/commercial-real-estate/an-esports-arena-could-turbocharge-the-gaming-scene-in-houston-108131

Edited March 24, 2021 by HoustonBoy

[hindesky]

Racing to Save the Astrodome

HOUSTON – (By Cynthia Lescalleet for Realty News Report) – Beloved and sometimes bemoaned, Houston’s Astrodome is a landmark in search of a viable legacy – for all to share.

Astrodome Conservancy is spearheading efforts to raise awareness of its dual mission: stewardship and partnerships in both preserving and redeveloping the aging iconinto something sustainable and truly accessible.

Toward that — and as part of a fresh public engagement campaign by the organization, an inaugural virtual Race for the Dome  invites participants to get active (literally) in supporting efforts to create a vibrant future for the long-languishing property.The shuttered asset is owned by Harris County and looms silently in tandem with NRG Stadium.

Held April 2-11 Astrodome Conservancy’s upcoming event offers a spot on format for these socially distanced times in that registrants  can independently run, walk, bike, hike, hop, scoot, skate and so forth a 5K race.

That’s a distance equal to about eight laps around the 8^thWonder of the World, organizers say. As presented in registration materials: “Your race. Your route. Your schedule. Your Pace.” Meanwhile, the first 200 registrants get special access to onsite laps on April 10 and the first 500 receive some snazzy dome sunglasses.

A stewardship and advocacy organization founded in 2016, Astrodome Conservancy is aware of the landmark’s history but is focused on securing its future, said Beth Wiedower Jackson, executive director.

As such, the conservancy raises private funds and seeks partnerships to support efforts to move the county closer toward “a viable, sustainable and more accessible” use for the Dome.

The property was designated a Texas State Antiquities Landmark by the Texas Historical Commission in 2017 and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Structurally sound, it’s not going anywhere, Jackson said. Its next generation, however, remains a progression of ideas, due diligence — and funding.

The conservancy has raised $1.5 million to date to support its mission of awareness and economic redevelopment via innovative partnerships. Creative programming – such as a virtual race — is part of that package.

Thinking Outside the Dome

While a partnership between public and private sectors has netted successful development and redevelopment of civic and cultural assets for the City of Houston, such as Discovery Green, the approach is new idea for county entities to navigate, Jackson said.

Another hybrid example — on a grander scale — is a network of underutilized infrastructure transformed into new urban spaces, such as the Hemisfair’s redeveloped 40-acre campus in San Antonio and Park Avenue Armory’s repurposing as a cultural hub in New York City.

Times Changed and Still Changing

Architects Hermon Lloyd & W.B. Morgan and Wilson plus local firm Morris, Crain & Anderson designed the concrete and columned Astrodome during Houston’s Space Age civic mojo. It was go-go years brash. It was a mid-century bunker. It was often copied.

When it opened with a Houston Astros game on April 9, 1965, Houston’s domed stadium ranked as the first enclosed, air-conditioned sports arena, with nine acres under its roof. While the ceiling rises 18 stories inside, three levels sit below grade for a tidy scale above the sea of parking lot.

During its glory days, the Astrodome was a home for Houston sports teams, championships and exhibition games; a venue for the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and equipment-laden Offshore Technology Conference; and echoing hall for the 1992 Republican National Convention. By 2002, when Reliant Stadium opened, Dome use had dwindled, though it did yeoman’s duty housing Hurricane Katrina evacuees. By 2009, it was shuttered.

Now is an ideal time for working behind the scenes and taking a private funding approach to support possible project development, Jackson said. And, like the 5K race, to get things moving.

---

https://realtynewsreport.com/racing-to-save-astrodome-a-run-at-redevelopment/

[TacoDog]

I think the Astrodome needs a fresh coat of paint.

[gene]

This is tonight:

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2021/06/10/astrodome-conservancy-hosting-virtual-public-meeting-to-get-input-on-what-to-do-with-historical-landmark/

 

HOUSTON – What to do with the Astrodome? That is going to be the focus of a meeting Thursday night.

For years, there have been several conversations about what to do with the Astrodome.

Tonight, there will be a public virtual meeting from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. to get public input on what to do with the historical landmark.

For the last eight weeks, the Astrodome Conservancy created a community-supported vision for the reuse and redevelopment of the landmark Astrodome. Through the Future Dome project, organizers asked for public input through a series of surveys, engagement activities, informative materials, and public meetings.

“The trick is finding the equation that works for commissioners court and for the public,” Conservancy Executive Director Beth Wiedower Jackson said.

Voters have already rejected a $200 million bond referendum and current county leadership shelved the last $100 million approved plan for the dome.

“We’re not going to the public to say, ‘Sky’s the limit, what do you want to see in the Astrodome?’ We know that’s not possible,” Wiedower Jackson said.

KPRC 2 Political Analyst Ed Emmett says the dome has a unique structure and it could cost a pretty penny to transform it into something else.

“If you start from that perspective, what is the minimal amount you can do to keep it standing and make it usable,” Emmett said.

Registration information can be found at future-dome.com and on the Astrodome Conservancy’s social media platforms, Instagram @astrodomeconservancy, Twitter AstrodomeFans, and Facebook @astrodomeconservancy.

Copyright 2021 by KPRC Click2Houston - All rights reserved.

---

 

[hindesky]

Haven't we already voted twice on this? Everybody wants something done but nobody wants to pay for it, so there it sits rotting away. Can't tear it down since somebody made it a historical building, I say let it rot away and in a hundred years it will be a tourist attraction like the Rome Coliseum.

[hindesky]

This was the plan I liked best.

https://kinder.rice.edu/2016/06/14/houston-architect-puts-forward-unique-vision-for-astrodome-overhaul

[dbigtex56]

I like it.
It's like the big brother to the spiral hill at McGovern Centennial Gardens in Hermann Park.

[Montrose1100]

I like the dome and what it means as a Houstonian, but this thing is Point Nemo in a sea of parking, in a fenced off convention/rodeo/football mega area. If the dome were next to Buffalo Bayou I would 100% be cheering for something like this. But it's not, I don't see how it's possible for a park, or something other, than a Hotel or Parking structure to workout here.

When you strip it of all its exterior details and invite the elements in, what's the point of have a giant open-air steel structure here?