About Houston
Exploring Houston - Hermann Park
Hermann Park, located minutes from downtown Houston, is a cultural and recreational hub surrounded by the Texas Medical Center, Rice University, the Museum District and various residential neighborhoods.
While in Hermann Park you can play at Hermann Park Golf Course or take the family to Miller Outdoor Theatre, the Houston Zoo, the Museum of Natural Science, IMAX Theatre, Planetarium, Japanese Gardens, Rose Garden, and more. The zoo includes nearly 5,000 animals with more than 700 species.
In July 2005, the Hermann Park Conservancy and the Houston Parks and Recreation Department were selected as the joint recipients of a General Design Award of Excellence from the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA). The award honored the dramatic physical improvements made in recent years to the area of Hermann Park known as the Heart of the Park.
The $9.1 million Heart of the Park project, completed in 2004, covers 18.5 acres of Hermann Park's 445 total acres. The Sam Houston Monument and Circle frame the Heart of the Park's north end; the area known as the Lake Overlook, which fronts Hermann Park's McGovern Lake, forms the south end.
The Heart of the Park's central and most prominent feature - the 740-foot-long and 80-foot-wide Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool - is flanked by two pedestrian plazas that are situated between the Sam Houston Circle and the Lake Overlook.
Bordered by 80-year-old live oak trees, shaded walking paths of decomposed granite, and groupings of new benches, the Pool also features a cascade created by the gentle flow of water down a series of stepped surfaces. Its black bottom was designed to enhance the water's reflectivity.
- Go to www.hermannpark.org.
LOCATION: South of Downtown, bounded by South Main, Hermann Drive, Almeda, Brays Bayou, and the Texas Medical Center
