Hermann Park is one of Houston’s great civic resources
containing a significant urban forest and many public venues.
It is the flagship of the Houston Park system, serving the
recreation needs of the City’s diverse population of
some four million and welcoming over six million visitors
a year. However, like many urban parks in America, much of
Hermann Park has been leased over time to other related institutions,
leaving little open space remaining for public use.
There had been a framework plan prepared for this park
by
George Kessler followed by a Hare & Hare plan in 1936
that had never been fully realized. A significant component
of the original park vision is the Hermann Park Reflection
Pool, which had been only partially conceived and was in poor
condition, and therefore very underutilized. So in 1992, with
only 20% of the parks original space remaining, the City of
Houston acted to reclaim the original vision for the park
and by doing so, to return a large useable open space to the
public. In an International Design Competition, the Rice Design
Alliance invited designers to respond to the needs of a diverse
population and to set the tone for Houston’s public
presence through the redesign of the “The Heart of the
Park”. The restoration and completion of the “The
Heart of the Park” became the generative force behind
the re-activation of a delightful, civic space.
In their award-winning plan, the landscape architect, teamed
with an architect, urban planners and graphics designer, honors
the original vision for the park’s major entry and central
public space while also integrating a contemporary approach
to realizing the great space as originally envisioned. Chosen
from over 100 respondents, the successful entry transformed
the historic heart of Hermann Park into one of the City’s
most treasured civic spaces. The landscape architect, as prime
consultant, led a team through a full design services process,
which culminated in the $9.5 million project realized over
a period of twelve years.
The landscape architect and the client group, stakeholders,
and the parks master planning consultant established four
core design principles: timelessness of design, an enduring
aesthetic, a legacy that would last for future generations,
and a project that could be affordably maintained in the future.
Named “The Heart of the Park”, the space is designed
to maximize people’s enjoyment of every square foot
of its 18.5 acres.
The 80-foot wide by 740-foot long reflection pool establishes
the formal central axis for the space and a central cross-axis
provides two smaller spaces to either side: the O. Jack Mitchell
Garden and the Arbor in the Pines. Lined by elegant pedestrian
promenades the formality of the promenades is gracefully reinforced
by a double row of mature Live Oak trees, the Live Oak Allee – one row
that had been planted in the 1920s to honor veterans of WW I, and a second row
that was added as part
of the project. As the consultant for several other large-scale
projects in Houston, the Landscape Architect was able to obtain
the donation of and choreograph the transplanting of 44 mature
Live Oaks to the park from other sites around the city where
these trees would have been lost to development.
Environmental issues were of central importance in the
design solution. To maintain water clarity and quality the reflection
pool utilizes a bio-filtration system, avoiding the use of
chemical treatments and excessive power consumption. At the
bottom of the reflection pool’s clay lined basin, perforated
pipes draw water and debris through a gravel bed where organics
are trapped and gradually decompose. To limit potential damage
from increased water run-off from the site paving, most horizontal
surfaces are paved with porous or semi-porous decomposed granite.
Preserving the existing trees that graced this site was paramount.
All excavations within the drip lines of the trees were done
entirely by hand to avoid disturbing the sensitive roots.
To protect the tree roots during the installation of underground
piping, the contractors wrapped each individual root with
moisture preserving insulation and watered them regularly.
Equipment traffic around tree roots was extensively limited
throughout the entire construction process.
In addition to Live Oaks, a mixed pine/hardwood forest characterizes
Hermann Park but over time it has dwindled. The Project added
Pines, Oaks, Cypress and other native or indigenous species
to the Hermann Park forest. Additional native plant materials,
such as Texas perennials, were utilized in special places.
Inspired by a 1930s postcard of the park, the landscape architect
re-established the original plantings around the historic
Sam Houston Monument Circle, the north terminus of the Reflection
Pool axis. The Circle has been restored as the prominent civic
landmark that was originally intended.
Simplicity, perhaps the most significant challenge in the
design of any active park space, was attained through clarity
of form, a refined materials palette, and by the distribution
of activity throughout the space. The materials palette was
kept purposefully simple and “of the region” to
ensure continuity and longevity. The dominant material is
limestone, used for the reflection pool coping and all site
walls. Paving materials include decomposed granite, clay and
concrete pavers, and concrete. A special limestone concrete
mix was developed to assure compatibility of paved surfaces
with the limestone elements.
Appropriate scale, another significant challenge, was key
to a successful civic space. Each park element was drawn,
modeled, mocked up on-site, tested, refined, and closely scrutinized
by the deign team and the client group to assure appropriateness
of scale and character in this setting. The scale of the space
had to respond to the larger urban design framework while
also relating to the human at the same time.
From a larger perspective the “Heart of the Park”
provides connectivity between other important park institutions
such as The Museum of Natural Science and Houston Zoo, creates
linkages to adjacent institutions such as Rice University
and Houston’s Museum District, and provides a portal
from the Park to the City’s light rail system. This
approach realizes the original Kessler intent for a grand
entrance to Hermann Park at its connection to Houston’s
most civic avenues.
The long-ignored public realm in Houston has finally come
to the forefront and people now understand the contribution
that significant public space can make to the quality of urban
life. Funded largely by private donations “The Heart
of the Park” represents the best of civic mindedness
and philanthropy for which Houston is acclaimed, and serves
as a successful example of the value of great civic spaces.
The design also represents the best of a collaborative
process. In all, 11 different entities were involved in making the
project a reality including City departments, not-for-profit
groups and commissions, and park users themselves. The “Heart
of the Park” in Hermann Park is not only a beautiful
civic space, but also a source of pride for the entire City
of Houston.
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