The Super Bowl attracted more than 1 million visitors (credit: houstonsports.org).
HOUSTON—Soon after Houston won the bid to host Super Bowl LI, a major oil bust sacked the city. Nearly 70,000 energy jobs were lost, crude dropped below $30 a barrel and one of Houston's key industries was benched. All was not lost, however, in this city that has industry diversity on its side.
Soon after the Super Bowl location was announced, the Urban Land Institute's technical advisory panel report noted Houston's “lack of destination appeal,” so city leaders began a massive development project focused on the Avenida. Avenida de las Americas fronts the George R. Brown Convention Center and runs from Minute Maid Park to the Hilton Americas-Houston hotel.
The Avenida Houston campus includes the convention center, Discovery Green park, Hilton Americas-Houston and the new Marriott Marquis. Discovery Green, the convention center and the Hilton predate Avenida construction, while ground broke on the 1,000-room Marriott Marquis in April 2014 and plaza/convention center makeover started in September 2014.
The original eight-lane road has taken a new shape as a two-lane one-way route that still provides access to the 663-car garage under Discovery Green, GlobeSt.com learns. The blocks surrounding Discovery Green and the convention center were revitalized with new restaurants, hotels, outdoor venues, street-level retail, walkability and most importantly, a cool factor that made Houston stand out in its role as host for Super Bowl LI.
Along Avenida de las Americas, five restaurants have been built. Events, festivals and other programs regularly take place along the avenida, in Discovery Green, and within the hotels and convention center.
In addition to the five new restaurants, the convention center features a new grand entrance that connects the building with the plaza and park across the street. Inside, five previously separate convention halls are now interconnected with a concourse that runs the length of the ground floor, GlobeSt.com learns.
Residing at the north end of Avenida Houston is the new Partnership Tower and a 1,820-car parking garage. The building is home to Houston First, the Greater Houston Partnership and the Houston Sports Authority.
The city spent roughly $1.5 billion on downtown projects to get ready for the football weekend, including $175 million on renovations for the convention center and Avenida Houston. Following the Super Bowl, an economic stimulus estimated at $200 to $350 million is the ultimate prize for Houston, according to the Super Bowl Host Committee, backed by Rockport Analytics. CBRE research breaks down the strategy, play by play, in this Tuesday morning quarterback report.
For the two weeks leading up to the game, roughly 1 million visitors were estimated to have used the Houston airport system, and for the final four days leading up to Super Bowl Sunday, 140,000 fans were anticipated to attend the official events, fundraisers, parties and of course, the game itself. CBRE Hotels approximates the 51st Super Bowl will boost Houston's hotel industry throughout the entire year, increasing average occupancy by 2% and the average daily rate by approximately $4.00 across thousands of rooms. And, local residents got into the hospitality game by taking advantage of Airbnb, according to Robert Kramp, director of research and analysis, CBRE Texas-Oklahoma-Arkansas region.
Whether rooting for the Patriots or for the Falcons, visitors pumped money into the local economy and, coupled with the extensive media coverage, gave Houston a big economic boost. The armchair quarterback was not as receptive, however, according to Nielsen data released by the network. Fox Television's broadcast of Super Bowl LI on Sunday night drew a 48.8 overnight rating, lower than the previous two Super Bowls, GlobeSt.com learns. As previously reported, many things have changed since the last Super Bowl in Houston back in 2004.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Lisa Brown
Lisa Brown is an editor for the south and west regions of GlobeSt.com. She has 25-plus years of real estate experience, with a regional PR role at Grubb & Ellis and a national communications position at MMI. Brown also spent 10 years as executive director at NAIOP San Francisco Bay Area chapter, where she led the organization to achieving its first national award honors and recognition on Capitol Hill. She has written extensively on commercial real estate topics and edited numerous pieces on the subject.
