![\"Astrodome](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/astrodome-loc-image-2004-800px.png\")
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File photo<\/p>\n
Pictured is the inside of the Astrodome in 2004.<\/p>\n
Following recently inflated cost estimates to renovate Houston\u2019s historic Astrodome, Harris County leaders said plans cannot move forward until there\u2019s significant private investment. <\/p>\n
An agenda item for the Harris County Commissioners Court meeting Thursday included a discussion about the findings of a recent architectural analysis, which found that renovating the decades-old structure would come at a cost of about $750 million<\/a>. Commissioners took the discussion into executive session and took no action on the item. <\/p>\n Representatives of the nonprofit Astrodome Conservancy attended the Thursday meeting, requesting a signal from county leaders to the private development community that there is interest in renovating the Astrodome. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said that\u2019s money the county itself doesn\u2019t have \u2014 and the project would require significant private investment to proceed. <\/p>\n Sign up for the Hello, Houston!<\/a> daily newsletter to get local reports like this delivered directly to your inbox.<\/p>\n Beth Wiedower Jackson, the executive director of the Astrodome Conservancy, said the organization is in discussions with multiple large-scale private developers who have signaled interest in the investment. Which one may step up to the plate has yet to be seen. <\/p>\n \u201cWe can and will continue to bring private dollars to the table for capital, for operations and for ongoing maintenance,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cAnd we are working to minimize the investment by Harris County in such a public-private partnership thanks to the availability of the historic rehabilitation tax credits.\u201d <\/p>\n The dome, which is owned by the county, saw its last publicly held event in 2002 and has been vacant for years. County and local sports officials have long weighed options for the building once known as “Eighth Wonder of the World<\/a>,” but none have stuck.<\/p>\n Though a $217 million referendum that would have helped pay for part of the renovation was defeated by Harris County voters in 2013, a recent survey<\/a> conducted by the University of Houston\u2019s Hobby School of Public Affairs suggested Harris County voters would now support using public funds to renovate the Astrodome \u2014 bringing a new glimmer of hope for the facility. <\/p>\n Jesse Dickerman, interim county administrator, said the county remains open to meet with anyone that the conservancy wants to bring to the table. He said the county is limited on money to invest in the redevelopment project, and bringing in new dollars may require legislative action down the road. <\/p>\n