The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo plans to build a 1M SF livestock and agricultural complex along Highway 288, it announced Wednesday.
The $300M project will be the largest single facilities investment in the organization's 90-year history. Plans call for two barns totaling 860K SF and a 140K SF central building, totaling 1M SF of air-conditioned space, HLSR told Bisnow.
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It will also include an outdoor, covered cattle yard, a new 2,000-seat auction hall, and a sales pavilion. The arena will accommodate roughly 5,000 people and may host additional events and concerts.
The new facilities, on HLSR’s property at the corner of Airport Boulevard and Highway 288, will supplement the organization’s existing operations. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo will remain at Reliant Park, where it has been for 65 years.
“This represents the largest investment in Rodeo history and a profound commitment to the future of our event, educational opportunities and agriculture,” HLSR CEO Chris Boleman said in a statement.
The multiyear project will kick off with a groundbreaking event late this year.
During the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the new complex will host all horse show competitions, some livestock shows, junior and open breeding shows, archery competitions, agricultural mechanics, commercial auctions and educational contests.
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In the offseason, the facility will support year-round use for educational programming, committee meetings, fundraisers, auctions and galas, HLSR said.
“For more than two decades Reliant Arena has been at the heart of our horse and livestock show operations,” HLSR Chairman Wesley Sinor said. “But as the facility where we host many of these events has reached the end of its useful life, it’s been clear that we need to act.”
The NFL’s Houston Texans also recommitted to Reliant Stadium early this year while announcing plans for a new headquarters and practice facility in an 83-acre entertainment destination in Bridgeland.
Plans were announced in April to revert Reliant Park and Reliant Stadium to their original names, which date back to 2002. They had been NRG Park and NRG Stadium since 2014, after NRG Energy acquired Reliant’s retail business in 2009.
