Discovery Green

Discovery Green
Discovery Green
Type	Municipal (Houston, Texas)
Location	Downtown Houston
Coordinates	29°45′9″N 95°21′31″W / 29.75250°N 95.35861°W / 29.75250; -95.35861
Area	11.78 acres (47,700 m2)
Created	2008
Operated by	Discovery Green Conservancy
Status	Open
Parking	630-space underground parking garage

Discovery Green is an 11.78-acre (47,700 m²) public urban park in Downtown Houston, Texas, bounded by La Branch Street to the west, McKinney Street to the north, Avenida de las Americas to the east, and Lamar Street to the south. The park is adjacent to the George R. Brown Convention Center and Avenida Houston entertainment district. Discovery Green features a lake, bandstands and venues for public performances, two dog runs, a playground, and multiple recreational lawns.^[1]

In the early 2000s, a public–private partnership between the City of Houston and a group of local philanthropic organizations, including the Kinder Foundation, was formed with the goal of constructing a new public green space in Downtown.^[2] This partnership financed the purchase of a series of surface parking lots on the east side of Downtown.^[2] Following the completion of land purchases in 2004, the Discovery Green Conservancy and the City jointly raised $125 million to construct the park.^[2] The design of the park, led by landscape architecture firm Hargreaves Associates, began in 2005.^[3] Discovery Green's public opening occurred on April 13, 2008; during the first two months of operation, an estimated 250,000 people visited the park.^[4]