Traveling east along Buffalo Bayou’s hike and bike trails, visitors enter one of Houston’s most historic and culturally rich areas. In 1914, the Houston Ship Channel opened to deep-water navigation. The channel, in combination with the railroads, transformed the area into the industrial heart of Houston. Today, Buffalo Bayou Partnership is working to bring new parks and trails, vibrant cultural destinations, affordable housing, and infrastructure improvements to the Greater East End and Fifth Ward neighborhoods in Buffalo Bayou East.













Buffalo Bayou East Master Plan
After two years of extensive community engagement, Buffalo Bayou Partnership launched a master plan for the waterway east of downtown Houston (from US 59 to the Port of Houston Turning Basin). Residents, community groups, and stakeholders from the Greater East End and Fifth Ward helped to envision transformative parks, dynamic recreational and cultural destinations, and connections into the surrounding neighborhoods. Through this process, the following core values emerged:
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Authenticity
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Connectivity
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Inclusivity
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Resiliency
By 2032, Buffalo Bayou Partnership and its partners will realize the Buffalo Bayou East 10-Year Plan thanks to a $100 million catalyst gift from the Kinder Foundation, which leveraged significant public support from Harris County and the City of Houston, including Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone funds.
Major projects include:
- Expansion of the City’s Tony Marron Park from 19 to 40 acres
- Restoration of Japhet Creek to connect Buffalo Bayou to the Fifth Ward
- Extension of the bayou trail system from downtown into Buffalo Bayou East
- Addition of two bayou-crossing pedestrian bridges
- Transformation of Turkey Bend into a recreational and cultural destination
- Development of a mixed-income housing project
Buffalo Bayou Partnership continues to raise the remaining $46 million needed to complete the plan. For giving information, please contact Leigh McBurnett, BBP Vice President of Development, at 713.752.0314 ext. 105.
BBP’s development of the 10-Year Plan is also made possible by the early support of The Brown Foundation, Inc., The Cullen Foundation, Garver/Black/Hilyard Family Foundation, Houston Endowment, Inc., The Powell Foundation, The Wortham Foundation, and other generous donors.