Hines Waterwall Park
The Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park is a great place for the family to obtain some really good down time within a stunning backdrop. The park features a 64 ft semi circular fountain that re-circulates 11,000 gallons of water per minute that tumbles down the structure’s inner and outer walls. Pretty awesome to watch, I’d say. This landmark park is surrounded by 186 oak trees and is a popular spot for its locals to meet up with friends, enjoy a Frisbee game, picnic, walk or even a fabulous photographic opportunity. In the heart of the city, the Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park is one of Houston’s most beloved, iconic landmarks and community centerpiece for visitors of all ages.
To stand in the Waterwall’s mist and be enveloped by the gentle roar of cascading water is one of the city’s most memorable experiences. Walking along the lush canopy of towering live oak trees while in the core of one of the largest business districts in the nation, is inspiring. As one of the most visited attractions in Houston, the Waterwall Park is a popular backdrop for unforgettable moments. We invite you, your family, and friends to create endless memories at the park. Located at 2800 Post Oak Boulevard between Hidalgo Street and Westheimer Road. Open daily from 8 a.m. – 10 p.m. In December 2009, the Uptown Houston Board of Directors honored the man responsible for the creation of the Waterwall Park and much of Uptown’s beautiful skyline, by naming this Houston landmark, the “Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park.”
The Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park continues to be maintained by Hines through a public / private partnership with its owner, the Uptown Houston Development Authority. The Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park has been and will continue to be the centerpiece of Uptown Houston which seamlessly blends business with pleasure, energy with grace and style with substance. The Gerald D. Hines Waterwall Park, formerly the Williams Waterwall and the Transco Waterwall, is a multi-story sculptural fountain that sits opposite the south face of Williams Tower in the Uptown District of Houston. The fountain and its surrounding park were built as an architectural amenity to the adjacent tower. Both the fountain and tower were designed by John Burgee Architects with Philip Johnson. Originally privately owned in common with the office tower, the waterwall and the surrounding land were purchased by the Uptown Houston Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, a non-profit local government corporation, in 2008 to ensure the long term preservation of the waterwall and park.
John Burgee Architects and Philip Johnson, in coordination with developer Gerald D. Hines began working on the Transco Tower complex in 1982, and completed construction of the office tower 18 months later in 1983. The Waterwall was fully and regularly operational in 1985. Construction and maintenance cost figures were never released, but at the time of completion, Johnson and Hines made public vital statistics about the wall, including measurements and water volume. The architects’ design for the Waterwall was to be a “horseshoe of rushing water” opposite the Transco (now Williams) Tower. The semi-circular fountain is 64 feet (20 m) tall, to symbolize the 64 stories of the tower, and sits among 118 Texas live oak trees. The concave portion of the circle, which faces north toward the tower, is fronted by a “proscenium arch” shorter than the fountain itself. The convex portion, its backside, faces south onto Hidalgo Street. Water cascades in vast channeled sheets from the narrower top rim of the circle to the wider base below, both on the concave side and on the convex side. This creates a visually striking urban waterfall that can be viewed from various buildings around the district. 46,500 square feet (4,320 m2) of water cover the interior, while 35,000 square feet (3,300 m2) cover the exterior. The main building material of the fountain is St. Joe brick. However, the Romanesque arches are made of Indiana Buss limestone, while the wall’s base is black granite. The entire fountain’s water supply, consisting of 78,500 gallons is recycled by an internal mechanism every three hours and two minutes.