Discovery Green

Kinder Foundation, the Brown Foundation, Houston Endowment, and the Wortham Foundation are the founders of Discovery Green, the 12-acre downtown Houston park. Kinder Foundation has donated more than $22.2 million to Discovery Green over the past two decades.

Photo courtesy of Discovery Green / Katya Horner.
Photo courtesy of Discovery Green / Lawrence Elizabeth Knox.
Jazzy Sundays in the Parks at Discovery Green in Downtown Houston on Sunday, October 17, 2021. Photo by @ jvincephoto.
Photo courtesy of Discovery Green.

These philanthropists approached then-Mayor Bill White with an idea to acquire the Houston Center Gardens adjacent to downtown Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center property, combine it with city-owned parking lots, and create a permanent downtown greenspace and public park. In addition to committing a grant of $10 million from the Foundation, Nancy Kinder served as the founding chairman of Discovery Green Conservancy, the nonprofit organization that built and now operates the park. The park was an immediate success with thousands of visitors flocking to the park – weekdays and weekends – to enjoy its natural features and active programming offered free to the public.

discoverygreen.com

10th Anniversary and Beyond

The park, which marked its 10th anniversary in 2018, has had a tremendous impact. It is a destination for Houstonians and visitors alike, attracting more than a million people every year and hosting hundreds of events ranging from festivals, concerts, films, exercise classes, toddler activities, and more. In April 2019, Discovery Green was named one of the year’s “Great Places in Texas” by the Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association.

To commemorate the anniversary and support future improvements to the park, the Foundation granted $3 million in 2017.

The Foundation went on to support the Bayou City Music Series, a concert series honoring the great jazz, blues and zydeco musicians of Houston in free concerts taking place in Discovery Green, Buffalo Bayou Park and Emancipation Park. It is now an annual event called Jazzy Sundays that draws more people each year.

In February 2023, Kinder Foundation made a $2 million grant enabling the Discovery Green Conservancy, which is not funded by the city, to establish an endowment. An additional $1 million gift toward the endowment was made in late 2024.

Wanting to stay ahead of emerging trends and an evolving context, Discovery Green Conservancy began preparing a new strategic plan in November 2024, and Kinder Foundation gifted $1 million to support its implementation.

Bun B kicks off Bayou City Music Series at Discovery Green
“It's really performing every bit the way the founders intended… something that people from the entire city and region can enjoy.”
—Bob Eury, Former Downtown Management District Executive Director

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