Former Houston Mayor Envisions New Fertitta Casino Inside Astrodome

^{Houston's NRG Astrodome could transform into one of the most unique casinos in the country if gambling is legalized in Texas. (Photo: Rolf Richardson / Alamy)}

If land-based casino resorts come to Texas, one former mayor of Houston says she knows the perfect place to make a gambling haven.

Former Houston Mayor Annise Parker made her comments during a debate for Harris County Judge candidates held by the Houston Association of Black Journalists, where she said the future of the Astrodome could be as a casino.

Astrodome’s Future in Doubt

The NRG Astrodome was built beginning in 1963, and served as the home of the Houston Astros baseball team from 1965 through 1999. While much of the structure still exists, it has been considered non-compliant with fire codes since 2008, and parts of the building were demolished in 2013.

The Astrodome is now on the National Register of Historic Places. But with the massive building sitting unused, its future came up as a question for judicial candidates. Parker, who served as Houston's mayor from 2010 through 2016, said the building deserves a brighter future.

“I think the Astrodome needs to be preserved. If we do nothing to the Astrodome and we just ignore it, it’ll stand there for the next 500 years,” Parker said. “I do believe that there’s a private sector opportunity. Tilman Fertitta would put the world’s biggest casino in there in a heartbeat, and then we could save the Astrodome and not worry about it.”

Parker added that the Astrodome could be better utilized if gambling were legalized in Texas and could "get rid of Lt. Governor Dan Patrick."

Both Patrick and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have come out strongly against bringing casinos to the state. And despite heavy lobbying efforts from casino firms like Las Vegas Sands, the state legislature has shown little appetite for gambling expansion in recent years.

Major Hurdles Stand in Way of Texas Casinos

While Sands has been the biggest backer of efforts to legalize gambling in Texas, Fertitta could be a major player if casinos were legalized in the state. Fertitta Entertainment owns not only the Golden Nugget casino chain, but also the NBA’s Houston Rockets and the WNBA’s Houston Comets. Fertitta owns a nearly 10% stake in Wynn Resorts, and Fertitta Entertainment has been in discussions to purchase Caesars Entertainment.

Casinos have a long way to go before becoming legal in Texas. It would require a constitutional amendment in the state, which in turn requires a two-thirds vote in both houses of the state legislature followed by a majority vote in a public referendum – Sands is already preparing for the day when that becomes reality.

In recent weeks, Sands has posted about a dozen tech-related jobs in the Dallas area, ranging from development of casino management systems to software architecture, data engineering, and IT support. The company has also opened a software development office in the state, and continues to support candidates for state office who support gambling expansion, even if those efforts haven’t resulted in many wins just yet.