by Paul Lines

Created on: November 08, 2008   Last Updated: December 05, 2008

Minute Maid Park, a purpose built baseball stadium, is probably one of the most famous sports venues in the city of Houston, Texas. It is certainly one of the most recent additions to Houston's sporting attractions, although it had been built to replace an existing stadium that could no longer cope with the increasing populace of sporting fans or remain economically viable for the teams that it housed.

Following complaints from local baseball teams about the need for a venue with better facilities and capacity, the Minute Maid Park project began life as part of a new sporting concept in 1996. It was part of a larger sporting project, which considered that a new complex should be developed in Downtown, Houston, dedicated specifically for sports activities. This was to include a new baseball stadium and basketball arena and to refit the existing astrodome for use by football teams and rodeo promoters. This complex was to be located in Downtown, Houston.

It was estimated that the new sporting project would cost in the region of $635 million. Within this figure, the construction of the Minute Maid Park was estimated to require around 40%. In the event, the total cost of the Minute Maid Park stadium came to $265 million, which was intended to be part public/part privately funded. The public funding was raised by imposing a special tax on hotels and car rental organisations as these were seen to be the main external beneficiaries. Twenty percent of the funds were raised through the venues owners.

Following approval of the project in November 1996, construction began on the Minute Maid Park a year later and the new stadium was finally opened to the public in late March 2000, when an exhibilition match was played against the New York Yankees. The first serious league match took place a week later on April 7.

The stadium has a number of unique features, the most obvious of which was the fully retractable roof, which cost $65 million and can close in twenty minutes without causing interruption to the game. It also had an "exploding" scoreboard and could cater for around 41,000 fans. Furthermore, it has 60 suites, a Diamond Club with lounge seating for up to 300 people and escalators and elevators providing access to all seating levels. It was these features which have helped to make the stadium one of the most prestigious baseball venues in the US.

Originally, the stadium was called the Enron Field, following a $100 million, thirty year sponsorship agreement with this Houston based corporation. However, because of the spectacular bankruptcy of Enron this deal lapsed and, for a short while it became Astros Field, until a new sponsorship deal was arranged with the Coca-cola subsidiary Minute Maid. Minute Maid actually paid $170 million for the naming rights, which covers a 26 period.

Minute Maid Park and the sporting complexes that surround it have become a huge attraction for local and visiting sports fans and also attract a significant number of sporting tourists. This, and the resultant economic impact of the Park on local businesses and tourism proves that it was a viable investment decision.

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