Quote:
Originally Posted by steverk
I live in Houston and have attended the 2003 Championship in Houston as well as the 2012 Championship in St. Louis.
In 2003, they made the mistake of using the Astrodome for the pit areas and it was a disaster! Very hard to get the robots to and from the pits. On that score, St. Louis was undeniably better.
However, the situation has changed since 2003. The Astrodome has been all but abandoned and the Reliant Center has been built.
With 5 large halls and over 700,000 square feet in the center, there is no question that the Reliant Center is large enough to house the pit areas. Add in the space within the dome and the facility could hande championships even if FIRST decided to expand to 8 divisions. However, it is at least 200 yards across a the parking lot to get to the stadium, which means it would still be a problem to get the robots to and from the pit areas.
For those still pulling for Houston, there is hope. The county is considering plans to demolish the Astrodome. Once that is done, it is anybody's guess what additional development will occur.
IMO, an expansion of the Reliant Center to the point where it is attached, or nearly attached to the stadium is possible, but some years away. IF it happened, it would be an ideal location for a much larger FIRST championship. In the meantime, it doesn't make as good a venue as St. Louis.
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Great. informative post. Thank you. I do not know if Houston has stepped forward with a bid for FIRST Championship, but maybe if the facilities are improved with connecting facilities it would be a good location for the future. When I was about 10, (40 years ago) I toured the Astrodome and it was touted as the 8th wonder of the world. And it was so impressive back then even more so later with an amusement park next door. (Astroworld) How times change!
I will say, Houston is an incredible city and I love to visit whenever I can!