Reliant Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reliant Park (formerly the Astrodomain) is a complex in Houston, Texas named after the energy company Reliant Energy. It is located on Kirby Drive at the 610 Loop. This complex of buildings encompasses 350 acres of land and consists of four venues, Reliant Stadium, Reliant Center, Reliant Arena and Reliant Astrodome.
The complex hosts many sporting events and conventions each year. The largest of which are the Houston Texans, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and the Grand Prix of Houston.
The complex is served by the Reliant Park Station, a light rail station on the Red Line of the METRORail light rail system. It also includes one of the world's largest parking lots (holding 26,000 total) and sees nearly 750 events yearly. Up until 2005, the lot also served as a parking lot for Six Flags Astroworld, which has since closed down.
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[edit] Reliant Stadium
Reliant Stadium, home to the Houston Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, was also the home of Super Bowl XXXVIII (held February 1, 2004), where the New England Patriots defeating the Carolina Panthers 32-29, but also infamous for its halftime show incident involving Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction".
The stadium was the first NFL stadium with a retractable roof and natural grass. The stadium that can be configured to utilize a 125,000 square foot space for general session, catered functions, exhibits, concerts, and much more. In addition, Reliant Stadium offers four massive concourse levels for special events. The design of the stadium roof provides a very flexible rigging congiguration for major audio and visual presentations. 200 suites complement Reliant Stadium.
[edit] Reliant Center
The Reliant Center is a convention center located amongst the sports venues in Reliant Park. It opened in 2004 and hosts various events year-round, including portions of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, who maintains its offices on the second floor of the building. It runs over a quarter mile in length.
Offering over 706,000 square feet of contiguous single-level exhibit space divisible into 11 separate halls, Reliant Center boasts 61 meeting rooms configurable into over 100 variations, 2 major conference centers, 118 loading bays, over 150,000 square feet of registration space. Reliant Center is equipped with a technological infrastructure capable of providing high-speed internet access, pre-wired fiber optic cabling backbone, on-site production facilities, 120 television monitors, and web-casting abilities. Exclusive services include on-site support from telephone and internet, electrical, food and beverage, rigging, security and event staffing. Each meeting room has its own dedicated sound, lighting and networking capabilities. A 280,000 square foot marshalling area on-site with over 200,000 square feet of space for shuttle transportation.
Along with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, Reliant Center hosts some of the largest conventions and trade shows in Houston. Some examples of these events are the Offshore Technology Conference, Nutcracker Market, Houston Auto Show, International Gem & Jewelry Show, Houston Gun Collector's and Antique Show, and the Houston Boat, Sport and Travel Show - to name a few.
[edit] Reliant Arena
The Reliant Arena, formerly known as the "Astro Arena", is a 350,000 square foot sports center. It was completed in 1974 and located adjacent to the Astro Hall (later renamed the Reliant Hall), which was later demolished in May 2002 to make room for more parking. The Arena has been the home of several different events, including the Houston Hotshots, Houston's former indoor soccer team and smaller wrestling events such as WCW Thunder and SmackDown!.
With fixed seating in the main arena for 5,800 and floor space encompassing approximately 25,000 square feet, Reliant Arena is ideal for general sessions and events for less than 10,000. Reliant Arena's pavilion also provides 1,700 fixed seats and is surrounded by over 325,000 square feet of exhibit space divisible into four halls. Reliant Arena also includes over 18,000 square feet of meeting space.
Some of the latest events to come through Reliant Arena are the And 1 Mix Tape Tour, Hannah Montana, The Cheetah Girls, and Sesame Street Live.
[edit] Reliant Astrodome
The Reliant Astrodome, formerly known as just the Houston Astrodome, is called the "Eighth Wonder of the World" by many as it is the first domed structure of its size created without a pillar supporting it in the center. The Astrodome opened for business on April 9, 1965 and was the home of the Houston Astros and Houston Oilers for several years before both teams moved out, the former to Minute Maid Park and the latter to Nashville, Tennessee. The Astrodome has been the home of many other special events, including the Republican National Convention, the NBA All-Star Game, and World Wrestling Federation (WWF) WrestleMania X-Seven. The venue has also seen the likes of historic recording artists such as Elvis Presley. Up until 2002, Reliant Astrodome was also the host of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the largest of its kind in the world. The last concert in Reliant Astrodome was the largest attended event ever in the building, featuring George Strait on March 3, 2002 at the Livestock Show and Rodeo where he sang to 68,266 people.
The Astrodome (and Reliant Park in general) gained nationwide notoriety in September 2005 when it was opened as a massive shelter for evacuees fleeing Hurricane Katrina. Each building except for Reliant Stadium (which was configured for the Houston Texans) hosted several thousand evacuees, and local media dubbed the complex "Reliant City". This "city" was itself evacuated when Hurricane Rita threatened Texas later that month, but many returned after the scare and moved out shortly before the end of the year.
[edit] JAGFlo Speedway at Reliant Park
The JAGFlo Speedway at Reliant Park race runs on a temporary race course that is configured throughout the parking lot. The speedway hosts the Grand Prix of Houston, a Champ Car race held each April since 2006. The pit lane and paddock for the race teams is located in Reliant Arena.
