Buffalo Bayou Promenade

Buffalo Bayou Promenade is a 23-acre recreation area that has transformed an impenetrable urban wasteland into a thriving urban waterfront. This inner-city parkland provides a critical pedestrian and bicycle link, a pedestrian bridge that allows citizens to make a complete loop without traversing city streets, artistic safety lighting that mirrors the lunar cycle, and frequent stairway connections from the bayou to the city streets above. Stone-filled gabions were placed along the waters edge as an ecologically friendly way to control bank erosion. Plant materials, as well as light fixtures and signage, were specially chosen to thrive in the midst of periodic flooding conditions along the bayou. The planting design also involved removing invasive monocultures and installing a large variety of native, flood-resistant riparian vegetation and trees, which significantly improved the areas wildlife habitat.

Site plan

Project Statement The Buffalo Bayou Promenade connected Houston's downtown core to the river park to the west under and through a neglected and near impossible mess of freeways and bridges, adding 23 acres of parkland to Houston's inner city. The landscape architect's early visioning and then implementation converted a trashsoaked eyesore intimidating to pedestrians and detrimental to flood control efforts into 3,000 linear feet of urban park that provides a prominent gateway to downtown Houston.

 The landscape architect balanced the stark, urban infrastructure with the bayou's sinuous forms. Exposed concrete, recycled crushed concrete, and galvanized steel were all employed for their durability, cost effectiveness, and contextual relevance. Special attention was paid to the design of railings, walls, walks and signage so that they would be able to withstand degradation due to potential erosion and water borne debris. A robust vocabulary of galvanized steel railings and other metal objects was conceived to acknowledge the gritty urban context and to withstand tough environmental conditions. Recycled concrete cobble-lined swales were placed to absorb the destructive, high volume flows of water pouring from the surface of the freeways.

 The success of the park was in large part to be measured by its ability to function as a safe pedestrian environment at night. The landscape architect conceived of three orders of lighting to illuminate the park: 1) a primary trail lighting system, 2) a system of lights to wash the 'dark nooks and crannies' and 3) an art-driven lighting component. The primary trail lighting poles were placed at a relatively close spacing to offer pedestrians a strong visual rhythm, a necklace of pearls, along the trail and to give a clear indication of where path would lead through the maze of heavy infrastructure. Utilizing custom cast housings, submersible lamps and concrete poles, these lights were custom designed to withstand periodic submersion and potential vandalism associated with such a site. Dual light fixtures were incorporated into each lamp to offer a level of redundancy, thereby ensuring a reliable system of illumination within the park even when one lamp was burned out.

 The second order of lights carefully illuminates the dark urban corners under bridges and behind walls to alleviate safety concerns; if you light the places that feel dangerous and where someone might be lurking you don't need to wash the whole site with light. This makes the trail environment feel safe, with very directed use of illumination. Lastly, the third order of lights offers a celebration of the balance between nature and urbanity where an artist and lighting consultant imagined a connection between the ebb and flow of the bayou with the waxing and waning of the bayou. Carefully located floodlights under major bridge structures and LED's on top of each light fixture gradually change from blue to white to blue in accordance with the lunar cycle and in a pattern that radiates from Allen's Landing, the birthplace of Houston.