Sports Rule
Soccer beats reading? Dynamos get their approval, while library gets cutbacks
On the same day that the City of Houston announced it was cutting library hours across the board, the City Council unanimously approved the agreement that could lead to a new $95-million stadium for the Houston Dynamos.
The long, drawn-out journey toward a new stadium for the soccer team received the expected-City-Council approval of the latest incarnation of an agreement for a state-of-the-art home for the soccer team in the same meeting in which the library cuts were laid out. The next step for the Dynamos deal is for it to be approved by the Harris County Commissioners on Tuesday.
If Harris County goes along (which is also expected), the hope is that the stadium could be built in time for the 2011 season. The city and Harris County would both contribute $10 million in property tax money to develop infrastructure needed around the land that the city already purchased for $15 million for the stadium.
At the City Council meeting, mayor Annise Parker made it clear that the city's responsibility should be limited to the land and infrastructure involved with the stadium. The Dynamos will still have to come up with more than $60 million for the stadium building itself.
The Houston Astros also have to approve a parking plan. The proposed site is across the freeway from Minute Maid and on nights when both teams play, parking could be an issue.