Reliant Park

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 convert|350|acre|km2|1 of land and consists of five venues: Carruth Plaza, 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 games, 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.

Carruth Plaza

Carruth Plaza was built in honor of Allen H. "Buddy" Carruth. Buddy was the long term president of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Carruth Plaza has eight bronze statues and an obelisk.

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 Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy.

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.

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 convert|706000|sqft|m2|-2 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 convert|150000|sqft|m2|-3 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 convert|280000|sqft|m2|-3|sing=on marshalling area on-site with over convert|200000|sqft|m2|-4 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.

Reliant Arena

The Reliant Arena, formerly known as the "Astro Arena", is a convert|350000|sqft|m2|-3|sing=on 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".

With fixed seating in the main arena for 5,800 and floor space encompassing approximately convert|25000|sqft|m2|-2, 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 convert|325000|sqft|m2|-2 of exhibit space divisible into four halls. Reliant Arena also includes over convert|18000|sqft|m2|-2 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.

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.

JAGFlo Speedway at Reliant Park

The JAGFlo Speedway at Reliant Park is a temporary race course that is configured throughout Reliant Park's parking lot. The speedway hosted the Grand Prix of Houston, a Champ Car race held in 2006 and 2007. The pit lane and paddock for the race teams were located in Reliant Arena. Due to the merger between Champ Car and the Indy Racing League in 2008, the 2008 Grand Prix of Houston was canceled. The status of the Grand Prix beyond 2008 remains unclear.

External links

* [http://www.reliantpark.com/default.asp Reliant Park Homepage]
* [http://www.grandprixofhouston.com Grand Prix of Houston Homepage]