History of Discovery Green

The Discovery Green Site
The current site of Discovery Green was originally a high-end residential neighborhood in the late 19th century. By the late 20th century, the site had become two large parking lots adjacent to the George R. Brown Convention Center, with a small strip of green space known as the Houston Center Gardens.Creating Discovery Green
The City of Houston acquired a portion of the land in 2002. When the rest of the property went up for sale, a group of philanthropists led by Maconda Brown O’Connor of the Brown Foundation, and Nancy G. Kinder of the Kinder Foundation approached then-Mayor Bill White with their idea of turning the space into an urban park. The Mayor agreed and became a strong advocate of a public-private partnership. Several other philanthropic foundations joined the effort, including the Wortham Foundation and the Houston Endowment, Inc.Construction
Hargreaves Associates, an internationally renowned landscape architecture firm based in San Francisco, oversaw the design effort. The lead designer, Mary Margaret Jones, grew up in Baytown before achieving international stature as a landscape architect. PageSoutherlandPage designed the park's architecture and Larry Speck, former dean of the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, was their lead architect. Lauren Griffith Associates, an experienced local landscape architect, provided landscape and horticultural design services. Artists Margo Sawyer and Doug Hollis were integral members of the design team and produced three works of art for the park. A large team of local and international engineers and specialists supported the core design team.Present and Future Impact of Discovery Green
Since opening in 2008, the park has helped drive increased convention activity and has served as a catalyst for $1.25 billion in office, hotels and residential development. Many significant projects have chosen locations on the east side of downtown largely due to proximity to Discovery Green:
o One Park Place, a high-end residential tower with 346 units, opened in 2009, featuring Phoencia Specialty Foods, downtown Houston’s only grocery store;
o Hess Tower, an office development which sold for – the highest price per square foot for commercial space in Houston at the time -- opened in June 2011;
o Embassy Suites Hotel, a 262-room Hilton Hotel, opened in February 2011;
o Marriot Marquis convention hotel just north of Discovery Green, opened in 2017; and
o Houston Independent School District’s Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (KHSPVA), opening January, 2019;
The Discovery Green Conservancy is proud to be a 4-star rated charity by Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator evaluates charities using an unbiased rating system for over 8,000 of America’s worthy charities. The rating system consists of two broad areas of a charity’s performance; their Financial Health and the Accountability & Transparency. The Discovery Green Conservancy qualitative rating exceeded industry standards and outperformed most charities in its cause. Click here to learn more about how you can donate to the Discovery Green Conservancy.
Discovery Green Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) organization.
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Discovery Green Reg. U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off.
