The pieces are definitely there for something great.
As it stands right now the two ways to enter the park are from the stairs up Henry B. Gonzalez by the river level Confluence mosaic mural or directly from Hemisfair by Yanaguana or the Grotto. The old cobblestone plaza in front of UNAM has been fused with the new construction, although I thought in the long term some renders show the current space as green area. You would have no idea this garden of Eden exists driving down Market or Alamo.
There are signs to not stakeboard and keep the grass clean and treat it nicely, but I wonder where the soundstages are gonna go for the music acts next week for JazzSA. If it's anywhere on grass it will inevitably leave marks, and what about food booths? These sycamores are already starting to shed some leaves and I wonder how upkeep in having the Springs clear will go, or will the water be turned off in the winter season? A backpacker who was taking a snooze under a tree in the northwest corner of this space was woken up by security but allowed to rest. The water that constantly gurgles from the Springs is clean and surprisingly cool (no taste test today), and it all comes from the basement levels of old Convention. The sidewalks are clear of birdshit but how long will this last? Hopefully maintenance is as on top as they are with the rest of the park.
I did not find a water fountain with a dog bowl attachment which was an odd choice, as I imagine the petowners at the 68 Apartments will soon be using this space. The bathrooms are identical to what they have at Yanaguana, which are still an improvement to what they have currently next to the towers. The pathway has been completely redone and has much better lighting at night, but these lagoons stunk ten years ago and they still stink now, which is a pretty sharp contrast right now when you leave Civic Park and naturally gravitate to Tower. Somebody should tell the Egyptian Geese there's new digs to move into down the road. You might say the grass is greener...on the other side.
It is true: swing to the Alamodome side of tower and ask to go up to the bar and you pay nothing, just a slip of paper to show the attendant, but a single Jack and Coke extremely heavy on ice costs you a nice 15$ (which is a dollar less than the general admission for an adult). I was not carded which I thought was pretty hilarious, and I imagine if I just stayed on the elevator up to the observatory deck anyway it wouldn't have mattered, there are no security guards to ask questions on that level that I saw walking around. There was a slight delay of about ten minutes in getting the elevator up from the bottom to the bar to go up...
But the view...was...worth it.
Here is the album with the rest of the pics I snapped. I think once the rest of the complex gets finished the worried about the space being too small will go away, it was a nice size already and the future Curio Hotel/apartments will have an extended plaza space as well. Of course if I did it my way it would be nothing but lawns but...I digress...It does remind me of Discovery Green in front of George R. Brown Convention Center, and once the trees get a few years growth under them it will be a much more dramatic entry when you depart Alamo Plaza past the Torch following to the Tower.
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