Discovery Green is happy to announce there are shiny new boards on the decks next to The Lake House and the Gateway Fountain. In keeping with Discovery Green’s mission to be “green,” the boards are made from Ipe wood sourced from an ethically managed forest.
The Gateway Fountains will be turned on again on January 14 – just in time for those hot Houston winter days!
These decks offer parents a cool, shaded place to sit and relax while their children run through the water jets, or to enjoy a meal while watching people skate or kayak. Nearly 15 years of continuous daily use caused buckling and cracks in the wood.
The $860,000 project includes replacing the boards on the North Pier. Construction on that portion will begin this month.
Discovery Green’s 2022 maintenance and improvement projects which included:
- Replacing over 50 percent of the plants in the Wortham Gardens with hardier, more sustainable varieties after many were damaged in the freeze of 2021.
- Installing bright, color-changing field lights along the Jones Lawn.
- Improving the Dog Runs by replacing fencing and improving drainage to reduce mud for our four-legged friends and their humans.
- Pouring fresh gravel in the bocce ball court, the picnic areas of Maconda’s Grove as well as the Dog Runs.
- Trimming and care needed for the 100-year-old Live Oaks along the Brown Promenade
In 2022 Discovery Green hosted over 460 free events and welcomed 1.2 million visitors. If you were one of those visitors, thank you! We exist to bring people together to enjoy the best of Houston’s diverse traditions and cultures. Hope to see you again soon!
LET’S HEAR FROM YOU!
If you have a minute, please consider taking our winter survey. From the very beginning, Houstonians have shared their hopes and dreams for the park. In fact, we installed field lights this year after previous survey respondents requested better lighting. Discovery Green would not exist if it wasn’t for all of you who have participated.
Discovery Green Conservancy is the nonprofit charged with raising the funds to maintain the park and provide free programming. If you are able, please consider donating. There is plenty to do in 2023!