In the early '60s Dallas wanted a domed stadium but Houston beat them to it

This was an architect's drawing of proposed multi-purpose stadium to be constructed mid-way between Dallas and Fort Worth in event a major league baseball franchise is granted in 1960. The architects were Broad and Nelson of Dallas and Preston M. Geren of Fort Worth. less This was an architect's drawing of proposed multi-purpose stadium to be constructed mid-way between Dallas and Fort Worth in event a major league baseball franchise is granted in 1960. The architects were Broad ... more Photo: Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, Special Collections, University Of Texas At Arlington Libraries. Photo: Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, Special Collections, University Of Texas At Arlington Libraries. Image 1 of / 95 Caption Close In the early '60s Dallas wanted a domed stadium but Houston beat them to it 1 / 95 Back to Gallery

This past week it was announced that the Texas Rangers, the Houston Astros' Silver Boot series rivals, would soon be getting a new stadium with a retractable roof just like the one here in Houston.

But that area has been waiting a long time for a baseball stadium with a roof over its head.

The Rangers and the city of Arlington announced plans for a new $1 billion ballpark last Friday that should be open for business no later than 2021. The cost of the development will be split evenly between the city and the ball club.

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Bud Kennedy with the "Star Telegram" in Fort Worth noted late last week that in the early '60s that area was working on funding for a domed stadium to entice Major League Baseball into the Metroplex.

Kennedy notes that the design was rather rushed to impress Major League baseball owners. He dubbed it the "Arlingdome" due to its location.

As we all know, those plans fell through and the first major domed stadium in Texas and the world would end up being the Astrodome, which opened for business in 1965.

The domed, air-conditioned Bi-County Stadium would have served both Dallas and Tarrant counties and would have rivaled Houston's own dome. Its projected cost of $9.5 million would have provided seats for 31,000 fans, with future expansions nearly doubling that seating number.

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The stadium would have likely housed the Dallas Cowboys who came to the area in 1960, in addition to the expansion Major League Baseball team that the city was vying for.

In late 1960, though, the MLB awarded new teams to California and Washington, D.C. which would become the Los Angeles Angels and the Washington Senators of the American League.

Soon afterward, the New York Mets and the Houston Colt .45s were added to the National League.

The dream of a North Texas domed stadium quickly fizzled away and Houston would become the home of the only domed stadium in the state. Ground was broken on the Astrodome on Jan. 3, 1962, and it opened on April 9, 1965. Total cost for the Dome was just over $35 million.

The Cowboys played at the Cotton Bowl until Texas Stadium opened up in Irving in 1971.

The Dallas area, of course, got the baseball team it wanted in 1972 when the Senators were lured to Arlington, in part by Arlington's mayor, Tom Vandergriff. That's when they became the Texas Rangers.