Located in West Houston, the Alief Neighborhood Center and Park serves one of the city’s most diverse communities. Over 90 languages are spoken in Alief, which is home to first-generation immigrants from across the world and refugees from as far away as Vietnam and close as Louisiana—especially in the wake up Hurricane Katrina, when many families made a permanent home in Houston.
Reopened to the public in January 2023, the project models a paradigm shift in community services, combining four City departments (Health, Parks, Libraries, and General Services) under one roof—a civic center at the heart of an entirely redeveloped 38-acre urban sports park. The center also features the “biggest front porch in West Texas,” a large, covered porch that serves as a flexible gathering space.
Raised out of the floodplain, the Alief Neighborhood Center and Park also model resilient landscape design after Hurricane Harvey, weaving hardy native planting through a necklace of forested basins that naturally drain the site. Since its reopening, the project has become particularly popular with families, local seniors, and the skating community, who helped design skate park features through multiple workshops with the design team.
Jeffrey Open Space Park
The Jeffrey Open Space Park represents approximately 96 acres of park and trails, with an average width of 265 ft. The three-mile long spine is designed for passive uses with a network of trails that connect to residential neighborhoods and active recreation parks.
The design process included a series of community workshops to solicit community’s commen...
Dubai Opera District
The elegant and the everyday coexist harmoniously in Dubai’s new Opera District, is a stylish cultural destination set to promote culture and the arts, stimulate global exchange, encourage local talent, and serve as a vibrant events venue. Dramatic view corridors lead to both to the opera house and to the adjacent spectacle of the world’s tallest building—the ...
Sonoma State Weill Lawn & Commons
Weill Lawn and Commons provide outdoor performance venues at Green Music Center, a world-class performing arts complex. The landscape architects prepared overall master planning and landscape architectural design. A simple, dramatic grading plan unifies project elements, directs circulation, and buffers concert venues from adjacent roadway traffic. Weill Lawn...
Dave Thomas Circle
One of the most dangerous intersections at the gateway into downtown Washington DC was targeted for significant improvement. Prompted by the demolition of a Wendy’s restaurant and new road alignments to ease traffic congestion, SWA/Balsley was hired to create a memorable new gateway experience and usable, inviting parks in the newly acquired public land. The t...