8TH WONDER

Astrodome reboot will be determined by one of these two courses of action

Astrodome reboot will be determined by one of these two courses of action
Here's where the Astrodome stands now. Composite image by Brandon Strange.
How an unlikely lobbyist could shape the future of the Astrodome

Here we go again. The Houston Astrodome Conservancy held a press conference Thursday to announce a two-month effort to survey Harris County residents for suggestions on how to re-purpose and essentially save the Astrodome as a vital, functioning facility.

Two-month effort? Last-ditch CPR may be a more accurate description.

Residents are being asked to click on future-dome.com and leave their ideas on what to do with the Dome.

Haven't we been through this several times? In 2013, a $227 million proposal to convert the Astrodome into a convention and event center was rejected by Harris County voters. At the time, and for a period after, many thought the bond referendum was a vote on whether to spend taxpayer money to support the project or tear down the Dome. However, tearing down the Dome was not an option in the referendum and wasn't on the ballot.

Later Harris County Commissioners Court, led by then-County Judge Ed Emmett, approved spending $105 million on a bare bones plan to turn the Dome into an underground parking garage and ground-level public park.

Before that plan could be implemented, current County Judge Lina Hidalgo was elected and put the kibosh on the Astrodome re-do. She said her focus was more on flood control and social issues, and placed the Dome on, as Mattress Mack would say, the back-back-back burner.

That's where it's stood for the past several years. The Astrodome sits, forgotten and forlorn, unloved and uncared for, home to cats and rodents, a molding eyesore next-door to Houston's gleaming, modern NRG Stadium.

And that's where the Astrodome Conservancy comes in. The group wants to celebrate Houston's futuristic imagination by preserving the greatest architectural achievement of our past. They didn't call the Astrodome the "Eighth Wonder of the World" for nothing.

However, residents have offered thousands of suggestions for the Astrodome in recent years. They've ranged from the reasonable, like build a combo hotel and convention center, to creative, like a massive indoor amusement park, to the outlandish, like indoor ski jumping and, my favorite, flooding the Astrodome floor and recreating historic naval battles.

While it appears an uphill climb, the Astrodome Conservancy has some factors in its favor. In 2017 the Astrodome was designated a State Antiquities Landmark by the Texas Historical Commission. That means the Dome can't be demolished without the commission's approval, which will never happen. So a wrecking ball never will get near the Dome. We can take demolition off the table.

Private funding vs. public money

That seems to leave a choice between finding private funding and pleading for public money to repair and repurpose the Astrodome.

Factors working against the Conservancy resurrecting the Dome as a thriving, functioning facility are many. The group would have to develop a plan that will convince private corporations to fork over as much as $500,000 to convert the Dome into a … what? That's the big question the Conservancy hopes to have answered by the public.

The Conservancy has met with Judge Hidaldo, who didn't budge on her lack of interest in renovating the Dome, and certainly doesn't want to spend one penny of taxpayer money on any such project. However, according to Conservancy officials, Hidalgo gave the Conservancy her blessing to poll the public and try to seek private funding to support whatever project may be feasible.

"Feasible" is the Conservancy's biggest mountain to climb. While the public submitted hundreds of suggestions to former County Judge Emmett in the past, not one excited private investors enough to open their wallets.

That's where the Astrodome stands now: legally impossible to tear down, and financially impossible to fix up.

My position has always been: fix it or demolish it. The Astrodome is broken. The current situation is sad and unacceptable. Houston is criticized for not celebrating its past by preserving its legacy buildings. Well, letting them rot is worse.

Of course, there is one simple solution that would have public support, financial backing and bring in billions to our state coffers: turning the Astrodome into a magnificent hotel-casino resort. But that won't happen because Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and the Texas Legislature refuse to let residents vote on legalizing gambling. Instead, they care more about telling people how to run their lives and what they can and can't do with their bodies. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

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The Texans are the class of the division. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

The Houston Texans received a lot of praise for their moves in free agency across various outlets. And for good reason, most people believe the team got significantly better with the additions of Danielle Hunter, Azeez Al-Shaair, and Denico Autry among others.

But there's another factor to consider this offseason. How much have the other teams in the AFC South improved?

When looking at the PFF grades in free agency, the Colts received a B-minus. Most of the Colts moves this offseason involved spending a lot of money re-signing their own players. Which is great in theory, but it's hard to improve the overall quality of your roster when you're bringing back players that were already there to begin with. A lot will be riding on player development for the Colts to see a big jump this season. A healthy quarterback wouldn't hurt either.

The Jaguars have made some big additions financially this offseason by signing receiver Gabe Davis and defensive tackle Arik Armstead. They also lost the top receiver on the market, Calvin Ridley, to the Titans. Gabe Davis wasn't able to establish himself as a reliable No. 2 receiver with Josh Allen throwing him the ball in Buffalo. So it's hard to believe he'll take the next step in Jacksonville. Their best move of the offseason might have been retaining edge rusher Josh Allen by using the franchise tag on him. So what did PFF think of Jacksonville's offseason? They received a B-minus, just like the Colts.

The Titans have a lot of turnover heading into the 2024 season, and not just on the roster. They have a new head coach in Brian Callahan, who's looking to revamp Tennessee's offense. Early in free agency, they agreed to terms with former Cowboys running back Tony Pollard, signing him to a 3-year deal at $8 million per season. Which is more money than the Ravens are paying for Derrick Henry, who left the Titans in free agency. Calvin Ridley was the most notable addition to the squad, he received a 4-year, $92 million deal. And while this could be viewed as an overpay, at least he gives the Titans' offense some upside. Their receiving corps looks a lot more dangerous with Ridley added to DeAndre Hopkins and Treylon Burks.

They also spent big at the center position, adding Lloyd Cushenberry on a 4-year, $50 million contract.

Because the Titans spent a lot of money on some highly coveted players, PFF gave them a B.

Now that brings us to the Texans. The Texans re-signed some of their own players like Dalton Schultz and Noah Brown. But they also made some big splashes with Hunter, Autry, Al-Shaair, and Joe Mixon. But the Texans spent their money in a more conservative way by not handing out many contracts over two years in length.

The Texans managed to add the best pass rusher in free agency with Hunter, but it's only a two-year deal. The overall talent level is going up on this roster, and GM Nick Caserio isn't having to sign players to long contracts that could come back and haunt him.

That's why we're seeing post-free agency power rankings coming out with Houston in the Top 10. And that's also why PFF gave the Texans an A for their moves in free agency.

Be sure to check out the video above as Craig from Sports Talk Extra takes an in-depth look at PFF's grades for the AFC South, and much more!

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