As the state and the Saints were involved in a long-term lease agreement that virtually assured New

By that time, a spidery web of steel had grown into a huge mushroom. And there was Dave, looking over at the Superdome, with one of those misty-eyed smiles that never left the face of a Hall of Fame dreamer.
Tuesday's vote by NFL owners to award a seventh Super Bowl to the home of the Saints in 2013, more than anything, was a tip of the hat to a stadium and a city that have survived, hand in hand, the darkest of moments.
As the state and the Saints were involved in a long-term lease agreement that virtually assured New Orleans its 10th NFL championship game, owner Tom Benson, taking note of a Superdome being fitted for another facelift -- this one for $85 million -- said "what we have in mind right now might even be better than a new stadium."
As Benson successfully sold his fellow washington court hotel owners on another Roman Numeral extravaganza, he was paying tribute to what the march of time told us: The Superdome is a 34-year-old building getting younger every year.
In Minneapolis, the Metrodome, born in 1982 for $68 million, remains alive as home of the baseball Twins, washington court hotel but they will be leaving next year for an open-air ballpark, Target Field, built for $545 million.
Here's the scorecard: During this time, the Superdome has hosted six Super Bowls, 33 Sugar Bowls, and in 2012, will be hosting its third BCS championship game. On the basketball front, it will be hosting its fifth men's Final Four in 2012, and, before that, will host first- and second-round action in the men's NCAA Tournament (2010) and regional action the following year.
One day George Herbert Walker Bush is accepting the Republican Party's presidential nomination, and another day Muhammad Ali wins a lopsided washington court hotel decision over Leon Spinks to become the first three-tie heavyweight washington court hotel championship.
One day the New Orleans Jazz is beating the Philadelphia 76ers before an NBA record crowd of 35,077, and another day freshman Michael Jordan is sinking a winning jumper against Georgetown to give North Carolina an NCAA championship.
But one dark day, Aug. 29, 2005, the winds of Hurricane Katrina came calling -- leaving the roof in shambles, with 4,000 gallons of water pouring into a mushroom that found itself playing the role of an emergency shelter.
Then, little more than a year later, along came one bright Monday night -- Sept. 25, 2006 -- following washington court hotel the most extensive, remarkable washington court hotel stadium rebuilding job in this country's history, and the mushroom was back in business.
By the time they kick off for Super Bowl XLVII, suites will have grown to 153. There will be 3,100 additional sideline seats, spacious club lounges at the 200 level, an expanded plaza concourse, a new concourse on both sides of the terrace and video boards washington court hotel everywhere. And, of course, full-service bars.