Waterloo Park

Waterloo Park includes a variety of spaces that reflect the landscapes of Austin and Central Texas, including hill country gardens with oaks and native plantings, wetland spaces that create places for play and relaxation, expansive lawns for gathering and activities, and more than a mile and a half of trails within the park. WGI provided civil engineering and permitting services for Waterloo Park and the overall Waterloo Greenway parks district.

In 2011, construction of the City of Austin’s Waller Creek Tunnel began. The mile-long tunnel is designed to remove more than 28 acres of downtown from the floodplain, keeping people safe from flash floods and making lasting creek and park restoration possible. Twenty years later, construction on the revitalized Waterloo Park began in September 2017. The park opened to the public on August 14, 2021. The re-opening represents a homecoming of sorts, bringing music, multicultural community programming, local and international talent, and family-friendly festivals back to the park.

The Public-Private Partnership with the City provides the structure and funding, the partnership with the Downtown Austin Alliance provides consistent and high-quality daily operations, the partnership with LiveNation/C3 provides world-class concerts, and numerous local partnerships allow WGC to program the park with exciting and relevant programs for the community. This model is increasingly critical as an example for other communities as park departments throughout the country face funding and resource limitations. This project received the 2022 Austin Green Award.