Department Overview
Created by city ordinance on March 15, 1916, the Department of Public Parks, as it was called at the time began with two facilities, Sam Houston Park and Hermann Park. (Code of Ordinances, City of Houston, Chapter 32, Article 1, Section 32-2) Over 90 years later, the Houston Parks and Recreation Department under the leadership of Joe Turner, Director Houston Parks and Recreation Department oversee 366 developed parks and more than 220 greenspaces totaling over 38,752 acres. Over 800 full-time employees work daily to fulfill the Department’s mission statement:
"To enhance the quality of urban life by providing safe, well-maintained parks and offering affordable programs for the community."
The Houston Parks and Recreation Department (H.P.A.R.D.) is composed of nine divisions which include: the Recreation and Wellness Division; the Greenspace Management Division; the Facilities Management and Development Division; the Management and Finance Division; the Grants, Legislation and Development Division; the Urban Park Rangers Division; Park Administration Division; Lake Houston Park Division and the Communications Division. Each division is committed to providing quality services and programs and to being responsive to the Houston community we serve.
The department owns and operates 58 community centers across the city and the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center on West Gray, presenting a wide array of educational and recreational programs for all ages and abilities to enjoy and participate in. Programs for youth include the Mayor's After School Achievement Program (ASAP), H.P.A.R.D After School Enrichment Program, summer youth programs, and summer youth programs and nature tours. For adults and seniors H.P.A.R.D. offers a variety of leisure, sports and fitness activiites.
Parks and esplanades are on a grounds-maintenance cycle to be mowed every 10 days during the growing season, which runs from March 1 through September 30. De-littering occurs in 3-day intervals in parks and every 7 days on esplanades. During the non-growing season, grounds maintenance crews shift mowing cycles to every 14-days in the fall, and once a month during the winter. The department also maintains a 72-hour response time for graffiti abatement and cares for the city's urban forest.
Since 1990, Urban Foresters have planted 27,730 trees through the 1% Set-Aside Tree Planting Program. Urban Foresters partnered with Trees for Houston, a non-profit tree advocacy organization, to initiate the Neighbor Woods Program to give Houstonians an opportunity to put down some roots in their neighborhoods.
H.P.A.R.D. owns 7 golf courses including the highly acclaimed Memorial Park Golf Course and 1 junior golf facility, the First Tee Junior Golf Facility at F. M. Law Park. The Department manages and maintains 2 gardens, the Japanese Garden and the Houston Garden Center. The department operates 38 outdoor swimming pools, 1 indoor swimming pool for people with disabilities programs at the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center, 20 water spraygrounds, 3 staffed tennis centers(with an additional 78 un-staffed neighborhood tennis sites located across the city) and more than 128 miles of nature or hike and bike trails.
Houstonians with a love for skateboarding have a variety of sites to hone their skills. The Lee & Joe Jamail Skatepark is a state of the art in ground facility set on the bank of Buffalo Bayou in Eleanor Tinsley Park. In the shadow of downtown, it has 30,000 square feet of challenges for skaters of all levels of expertise. H.P.A.R.D. also operates 5 above ground skateparks located across the city. These include the Dylan Duncan Skatepark, Eastwood Skatepark, Watonga Skatepark, Joe and Theresa Padilla Skatepark, and Clinton Skatepark.
In May 2004, the Houston Parks and Recreation Department added dog parks to their facilities. Ervan Chew, 4502 Dunlavy, was the first neighborhood park in Houston to allow dogs to legally run free, off-leash, in a designated dog zone. Maxey Park, 601 Maxey Road, followed in September of 2004. This community park dedicated approximately 12 to 13 acres of parkland as a place for dogs. Levy Park, located at 3801 Eastside, became the third dog park in September of 2006. Since then, dog run areas have been built in West Webster Park, 1502 West Webster, which features a 5,000 square foot run added in 2009, T.C. Jester Park, 4201 West T.C. Jester Blvd, which has separate runs for big and small dogs, Tanglewood Park, 5801 Woodway Drive, where the dog park was opened in 2010, and Market Square, 301 Milam, which was renovated in 2010 to include the first dog run in the downtown area.
On October 15, 2008 the Houston Parks and Recreation Department became one of only seventy-nine agencies in the country to have received national accreditation from the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies (CAPRA). This distinguished accomplishment was announced in Baltimore, MD at the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) 2008 Congress and Exposition.
The process of accreditation is extensive and took several years to accomplish. After the initial application, the agency completed a detailed self-assessment report followed by a visit to the City of Houston by a team of experienced park and recreation professionals. Finally, a review was conducted by CAPRA and accreditation was formally conferred by the Commission on October 15, 2008.
National accreditation requires park and recreation agencies to respond to 156 standards representing elements of effective and efficient park and recreation operations. To become accredited, agencies must demonstrate their ability to meet 138 standards, 36 of which are designated as fundamental to quality operations and are required of all agencies.
Joe Turner, Director, Houston Parks and Recreation Department, accepted the National Accreditation Recognition Award for the department during the annual CAPRA Reception on October 15, 2008 in Baltimore, MD.