Gasmer Drive Redevelopment Masterplan

Houston, TX 2022

Originally a Shell Oil Company testing facility, the City of Houston acquired this 28.8 acre site in the Westbury Neighborhood within Brays Oak Management District, with the intention of converting it into a detention basin for flood water. But out of an interest in the site as the location for the new Levitt Pavilion Houston, the proximity of the site to the Willow Waterhole Greenway, and a strong desire to preserve the industrial heritage of the site, a more complex vision was born.

In 2021, NA+AA, in collaboration with landscape architects and planners, Lionheart Places, were tasked with developing a masterplan for this new vision for the site.  The masterplan is organized into four main quadrangles, each with a distinct program (Community, Event, Education and Performance), connected by ground level and elevated walkway networks. The site captures 75.5 acre feet of storm water through an intricate system of ponds, wetlands, rain gardens, sunken lawns and underground cisterns that are integrated into the design and allow for the preservation and reuse of the existing buildings and structures to support the programs within each quadrangle. Once complete, the barriers between the Gasmer Site and the Willow Waterhole Greenway will blur, creating a unique entertainment and recreation hub for the underserved South West region of Houston.

Click here to view the full master plan.

Landscape Architect: Lionheart Places