Spring Creek Greenway Web Site Greenway Brochure and Map (PDF)

"Greenways allow us to treat land and water as a system, as interlocking pieces in a puzzle, not as isolated entities."

Edward T. McMahon, American Greenways Program

Goals:

1. This distinctive undertaking will eventually result in a 40-mile, 15,000-acre linear park/trail system on the north and south sides of Spring Creek. Outdoor recreational activities include canoeing and kayaking with launches, equestrian trails, natural surface and paved multiuse trails, parking areas, picnic areas and playgrounds, rest areas, anchor parks and nature centers, and more.
2. A water trail—a marked interpretive trail along a contiguous stretch of the creek—with historical and ecological information for canoeists and kayakers, nature lovers, and the general public.

While Precinct 4 can only focus on acquiring property on the south side of Spring Creek, Bayou Land Conservancy has worked diligently with Montgomery County to secure the property on the north side of the creek.

Benefits:

A nearly 10-mile continuous trail connects Pundt Park in Spring, TX to Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center in Humble, TX. This one-of-a-kind opportunity allows the public to enjoy natural beauty and outdoor recreation close to home.

Spring Creek is one of only two creeks in Harris County that remain in a state of undeveloped wilderness: Clear Creek is the other. All other Harris County creeks and bayous (i.e. Greens, White Oak, Buffalo, etc.) have either been channelized or concreted. According to Bayou Land Conservancy, one of several partnering agencies of the greenway project, “The Spring Creek Greenway is now the largest forested urban corridor in the United States.”
Spring and Cypress Creeks feed into the San Jacinto River, together affecting the Lake Houston watershed, a major drinking water supply for Houston and Harris County residents. The Spring Creek Greenway has a direct and positive impact on the water quality of the Lake Houston watershed.

Additionally, ponds, tributaries, wetlands, and secondary creek banks—like those found alongside Spring Creek—are extremely important for slowing velocity, trapping sediment, and filtering pollutants during major flooding.

Due to the limited industry and development along Spring Creek, pollution value is low, which is a major contributing factor to it being considered a “healthy creek.”

White bass are plentiful in the winter, while hybrid bass, catfish, and shad are plentiful at other times of the year.

Project funding:

Initial cost estimates for land purchases was $4.5 million, and the Harris County Flood Control District was essential in securing grant funds to offset county funding. Associations and organizations that support green space preservation, such as the Bayou Preservation Association (BPA), The Park People, and Bayou Land Conservancy, also assisted in securing funds and partnering with Precinct 4 to make a project of this magnitude possible.

Final cost estimates for infrastructure, personnel, and maintenance cannot be determined at this time.

History:

Originally initiated in 1982 as the “Cypress Creek Parks Project” by then Harris County Judge Jon Lindsay, Harris County purchased much of the existing land along Spring Creek. After former Commissioner Jerry Eversole realized only a few tracts of land along the floodplain were needed to connect the creek side property from Pundt Park to Highway 59, he sought out partners to accomplish this worthwhile goal that will benefit generations to come. It was also at this time that the project scope was widened to the current plan and renamed the Spring Creek Greenway.