Cynthia Woods Revamp Starts

The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Texas, which shuttered in September because of damage caused by Hurricane Ike, is undergoing a $9 million renovation project scheduled for completion by May.

The project, a partnership with Pavilion booker Live Nation, will add 2,000 reserved seats, bringing the covered-seat capacity to about 6,500 including several additional box seats, and a larger canopy structure. The overall capacity of about 16,500 including lawn seating will remain the same, according to the venue’s Web site.

The Pavilion was temporarily shuttered when Ike severely damaged the fabric canopy and steel support structure over the reserved-seating area. Despite the bad situation, venue CEO and president Jerry MacDonald said that Ike opened the door to other options.

“We took a long, hard look at our situation, considered several options and decided this renovation was the best course of action for us to take at this time,” MacDonald said in a statement. “Although the damage from Ike was devastating, it presented us with the perfect opportunity to consider expanding our covered-seating capacity to make our venue more appealing to both artists and concertgoers.”

The Pavilion’s 20th concert season is scheduled to kick off with the Dave Matthews Band May 1.