An entry in a competition, this 15-acre arts park along Town Lake is designed with a series of gathering places that promote community. The Arts Center and Bridge run on a north-south axis across the Lake, cutting through the park and denoting its two precincts. To the east, the park is connected with water and aquatic life, while to the west, the park connects with the floodway and the beauty of the desert. In the design, a serpentine graphic banding of the property is created with stripes of planting, earth colored paving, and crushed gravel, allowing the park to read from multiple perspectives and scales.

On the east side of the park, land is molded into five zones, each separated by linear paths that slice through the property. Using a series of berms, multiple rooms are set up for theater stages, children’s play rooms, and educational gardens. Close to the waterfront is the amphitheater, where the berms are then transformed into ribbons of seating mounds.

The west side of the park emphasizes a larger mix of indigenous plantings that favor biological diversity. In an effort to blend in the parking, which is also located on the west side, serpentine planting bands are continued and earth-colored paving is used.

Architect: SOM / Artist Renderings: Michael McCaan