Houston’s Astrodome gets a $105M Facelift

One of Houston’s historical landmarks is getting a renovation. Dubbed “The Eighth Wonder Of The World” at one time, the Astrodome was home to Houston’s baseball team, the Houston Astros. Since its doors were shuttered in 2009, there have been multiple proposals regarding how to use the space, and now construction will begin later this year for a $105 Million renovation, and is proposed to take about 17 months.

“The first thing we have to do is get it back to where it’s structurally sound,” Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said after Tuesday’s court meeting. “Nine acres of open space, under cover, in Houston, Texas, is a big deal. We’ve already been contacted by all sorts of groups that want to come use it, so it’s exciting.”

Funding for the $105 million renovation comes from three sources: the county’s general fund, made up of property tax revenue, hotel taxes, and county parking fees. The current plan calls for raising the Astrodome floor to ground level and building 1,400 parking spaces. It would also create nine acres of event space and open more than half a million square feet for redevelopment.