HOUSTON – The big opening celebration for Buffalo Bayou Park will be pushed back to fall, according to organizers.
When the water finally receded into Buffalo Bayou Tuesday, a lot of debris and mud was left at the dog park on Allen Parkway near Montrose.
Valerie Wooters brought her two dogs to the park for the first time – but she will have to come back. The dog park will be closed for at least several weeks.
"Well, I wanted to see the aftereffects of the floods. It's pretty bad," she said. "It's muddy everywhere and gross and sticky."
The Buffalo Bayou Partnership said the $58 million project between Shepherd and Sabine is not damaged even though it was mostly underwater on Tuesday. The park was supposed to have a celebration of the changes in June, but that will be delayed until fall.
"Everything we've designed in the park has been constructed to withstand high water events like this," said Anne Olson, president of the BBP. "So the hike and bike trails, the benches, the trash receptacles, even our special lighting fixtures all have been designed to really withstand a flooding and high water event."
Buffalo Bayou Park does have a second purpose: "It still is a storm water channel," said Olson, "and the beauty of it is, when the water goes down it still is really a beautiful park."