ESPN Moves Super Bowl Shows from Midtown Park to Downtown Parking Lot Next to Salvation Army HQ

Midtown Superblock Construction, January 2017, Main, McGowen, Travis, Anita streets, Midtown, Houston, 77003

A spokesperson from ESPN confirms to Swamplot that the network will not be using underground-parking-garaged Midtown Park as the main set for its Super Bowl week teevee shows after all, contrary to that October announcement. Workers were on the scene on Monday (as shown here), and the main pavilion structure appears to have been undergoing glow tests in the last few weeks by the same lighting design company that designed the new US59 bridge LEDs. The scaffolding-covered Camden apartments structure, however, appears to be missing some more significant finishing touches:

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Midtown Superblock Construction, January 2017, Main, McGowen, Travis, Anita streets, Midtown, Houston, 77003

The broadcasts will be held instead from the whole-block parking lot across Bell St. from Root Park, catty-corner to Toyota Center and across Austin St. from the midrise housing the Salvation Army Greater Houston Area Command. That block is also owned by Camden, which delayed plans to put a residential tower on it in the wake of the oil crash. A rep from Midtown Houston tells Swamplot there will still be other events going on at Midtown Park and nearby Bagby Park for game weekend, starting on Super Thursday.

Images: Swamplot inbox

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One Comment

  • I’ve been watching the progress of this especially when ESPN announced it was broadcasting from here. From the beginning I looked very doubtful. The progress was crawling and they rarely worked weekends. I talked with several workers and they all said it would be ready but I was skeptical. I was right, Campo dropped the ball on this and since he was instrumental in bringing the Super Bowl it looks like egg on his face for not making it happen.