HOUSTON \u2013 For several years, there was a recurring lament within the Texans organization accompanied by a growing vision.<\/p>\n
The Texans wanted their own state-of-the-art training facility and a team headquarters that could house players, coaches and all of their staff under the same roof. <\/p>\n
The AFC South franchise shares NRG Stadium, the site of their games, with the rodeo along with concerts and other events held there throughout the year. And that has created frequent spacing and scheduling conflicts as they conducted practices during the season along with training camp and offseason activities. <\/p>\n
The Texans, including principal owner Cal McNair and his wife, foundation vice president Hannah McNair, have long wanted something modern for the team they could both call their own, and something they could share with the community.<\/p>\n
Now, the Texans have achieved something they\u2019ve desired for years as they announced plans Thursday for a training facility, headquarters across 22 acres as the centerpiece of an 83-acre sports and entertainment complex development set for Bridgeland in Northwest Harris County. <\/p>\n
It will be called Toro District.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt starts with being thoughtful, and it starts with understanding what the mission is and the focus and the main thing is football,\u201d Texans team president Mike Tomon told KPRC 2 during an interview at NRG Stadium. \u201cHow do we put our team and the overall organization in a position to make their job of becoming world-class and focused in on the goal, how do you make sure, as all of this is going on, how do you make sure it\u2019s the main thing? And that\u2019s been the driver that we started with is how do we create a competitive advantage for the football team? And everything else kind of falling in line thereafter. Starting top down, it\u2019s a commitment to win championships.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough Cal\u2019s vision, we started to narrow in on that area. We wanted to make sure we have a competitive advantage for the team. It was also making sure we make a really positive impact on the community. We have some great programs that we\u2019re working in partnership with the county to roll out that will benefit high school students as well as colleges and local residents from a jobs perspective. All those pieces were really important to the McNairs. We\u2019re really excited to land in this spot.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project is being built through a public-private partnership approved unanimously by Harris County officials. A projected $150 million share will be paid for through a tax increment reinvestment zone with a portion of country property taxes allocated annually for infrastructure in the area for the project, Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones told KPRC 2 in a telephone interview.<\/p>\n
The Texans, in a collaboration with Harris County and Howard Hughes Holdings, the developers of Bridgeland, The Woodlands and Summerlin in the Las Vegas area, plan to break ground this year and move into their new digs during the summer of 2029.<\/p>\n
The Texans had clearly outgrown NRG Stadium and needed more space to operate.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s friction on how we go through our day,\u201d Tomon said. \u201cThis puts us in a position where we can all be together in this world-class training facility and headquarters and focus in on our goal. We have big aspirations. The organization is growing. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd this is a great representation of where we\u2019re going and how the best way to get there. I think it feels perfect because it\u2019s identifiable. It\u2019s academic. We can see how we get there. We have the ability to plan and be really thoughtful along the way. We really looked at this as a unique opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
There will be 175,000 square feet set aside for team headquarters, and an indoor fieldhouse of roughly 150,000 square feet. This will allow the team to practice indoors to account for the Houston heat and unpredictable weather patterns.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great day to be a Texans fan,\u201d said Briones, who worked closely with the Texans, Howard Hughes and Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey on this project. \u201cThis is definitely a win-win-win-win-win-win: multiple wins. This really is a landmark public-private partnership, and I am thrilled and I am thankful. And it really is a great day to be a Harris County resident and to be a Texans fan. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re keeping them here at home. We\u2019re creating jobs, we\u2019re helping students, building roads, building parks, building a county services hub. And it was really about creative solutions and community oriented stewardship. I can\u2019t wait to continue this progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
This shift to the Houston suburbs, in this planned development led by Cal McNair and Hannah McNair in partnership with Harris County and Howard Hughes, is expected to create $34 billion in long-term economic impact and create 17,000 jobs while expanding infrastructure and growth in the region.<\/p>\n
The development in the community is expected to include hotel, entertainment, commercial, medical space, retail, restaurants, opportunities for youth sports like flag football and other community events.<\/p>\n
Inspiration and ideas were derived from several areas calling on Tomon\u2019s background with stadiums and projects nationally and internationally with Legends Global Attractions. That included previously working with SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, Real Madrid\u2019s Santiago Bernabe\u2019u Stadium, the Dallas Cowboys\u2019 AT&T Stadium, the Las Vegas Raiders\u2019 stadium, Notre Dame, FC Barcelona, FIFA World Cup, Highmark Stadium and work with the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.<\/p>\n
The Texans and their partners looked at the setup for several standalone training facilities and sports and entertainment complexes. That included The Star, the Cowboys\u2019 complex in Frisco, the Las Vegas Knights in Summerlin, another Howard Hughes community, The Battery, the Atlanta Braves\u2019 facility and more.<\/p>\n
David O\u2019Reilly, CEO of Howard Hughes, told KPRC 2 the idea was to find \u201cThe best of the best of the best\u201d and implement a project the Texans could put their personal stamp and signature on and be proud of.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a really fortunate situation,\u201d Tomon said. \u201cWe have a lot of confidence in the experience we have, being able to lean on that. From the McNair\u2019s standpoint and the Texans overall, we have a really great comfort in who we are. When you go into these projects, there\u2019s a tactical piece and there\u2019s a strategic piece. It\u2019s the best of both worlds with that.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was really important for us to have the right real estate development partner. Howard Hughes is world-class. Not only did you need a world-class partner, but you needed one that understood two main components Houston and what a sports-anchored environment needs to look like and how it best works. And they have a fantastic credibility sheet, especially highlighted by what they did in Summerlin in Las Vegas with the Golden Knights. And so we really felt like they were the right partners to go do something special.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project, a multiple-year collaboration, passed unanimously during county commissioners\u2019 court, a 5-0 balloting, that approves the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is going to be a major impact for Bridgeland and the neighboring communities,\u201d Briones said. \u201cI was very pleased that unanimously at court we passed the framework for a landmark public-private partnership that will spur transformative economic development for Northwest Harris County, which is one of the fastest growing areas in the country. In the next 25 years, Harris County is projected to grow by 40 percent. In this Northwest area, we\u2019re expecting to see approximately 300 percent growth. This is just astronomical. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis Toro District will catalyze economic development and growth. Seventeen thousand of the 60,000 jobs created in the next decade will be directly attributed to the Toro District. I used to be a teacher and I\u2019m a mom of three little girls. I am thrilled that there will be internships for students. There will be sports programming. There will be opportunities for the school districts to use the stadium there for things like graduations. I\u2019m also very thrilled that the development will be done with public dollars will adhere to all of our county policies. We\u2019re creating economic opportunity. There\u2019s huge wins on the infrastructure front as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Texans principal team owner and CEO Cal McNair is a Cy-Fair High School graduate<\/p>\n
Now, the Texans are going to train around the year in the Cypress area in a fancy training facility and team headquarters.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday is a historic day for the Houston Texans, our fans, and the Greater Houston area as we partner with Howard Hughes and Harris County on a world-class sports and entertainment destination, including our new headquarters and training facility,\u201d Cal McNair said. \u201cOur organization continues to grow and this aligns with our goals of bringing a championship to Houston, enhancing community services and making sports more accessible. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis project reinforces our long-term commitment to Harris County and our focus on driving growth and opportunity for the community. It will set the new standard for the global sports and entertainment industry and it\u2019s the most significant evolution for our organization since our inception.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Texans worked closely with Briones and Ramsey on the project. This undertaking will include expanded parks and trails, infrastructure improvements and a future community center.<\/p>\n
Toro District is expected to significantly boost economic development in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not just a headquarters, it is a statement about where Houston is going,\u201d O\u2019Reilly said. \u201cWhen you bring together visionary public leadership, a world-class NFL franchise, and a long-term development partner, you can do something far bigger than any one organization alone. <\/p>\n
\u201cToro District will create jobs, strengthen infrastructure, expand access to services, and deliver a gathering place that families will enjoy for generations. We are incredibly proud to partner with the Texans and Harris County to build something that reflects the ambition and energy of this region.\u201d<\/p>\n