As Kevin Costner noted in the hit film Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come.” This was certainly the case at the 2013 Parks Build Community dedication of Shady Lane Park in north Houston. On the sunny Thursday morning of October 10, nearly 500 people gathered to hear Houston Mayor Annise Parker, the Houston Parks and Recreation Department, NRPA, and local and national partners announce the opening of the newly enhanced Shady Lane Park. While referencing Shady Lane Park as a field of dreams would be partly correct, a more accurate description of the newly improved park comes from people in the local community who consider this park their own Disneyland.

Many of the attendees at the dedication event were familiar with the park in its previous state and would likely describe it as an important place, but one that wasn’t living up to its potential. These perceptions were changed forever when the last bit of protective wrap was cut off of the new play equipment.

With major contributions coming from PlayCore through its GameTime brand, Shady Lane Park took on a whole new life — one filled with nature-based play features including a bayou boat and larger-than-life alligator. The new park makes an obvious and intentional connection to nature. As Houston’s bayous serve both critical stormwater management and ecological functions, opportunities to learn about the importance of environmental stewardship abound at Shady Lane Park.

Leveraging PlayCore’s initial commitment to the 2013 Parks Build Community project at Shady Lane Park, the City of Houston and the Harris County Flood Control District brought together an array of local and national partners who saw the vision and recognized the benefit of turning Shady Lane Park into a destination for not only the local community, but also for residents across Houston. Greenfields Outdoor Fitness donated fitness equipment that allows users to improve their health, surrounded by the natural beauty of the new park and kept cool by a Superior Recreational Products shade canopy. Visitors to Shady Lane have more than shade to keep them cool, with a Water Odyssey spray feature that also helps direct attention to the numerous trees and other landscaping improvements donated by Trees for Houston, Sustainable Growth Texas, Tree Stake Solutions and Nature’s Way.

A tremendous amount of attention and expertise went into selecting — and developing from scratch in the case of the bayou boat and alligator — the right park amenities. While these amenities help make Shady Lane the fabulous park it is today, without the vision and coordination of Talley Landscape Architects and M2L Associates, along with the dedication of Kraftsman Commercial Playgrounds and Water Parks and support from the Houston Parks Board, Shady Lane would not be nearly the same.

NRPA’s Parks Build Community is an ongoing national initiative demonstrating the transformative value of parks and recreation on the health and vitality of communities across America. The vision for Parks Build Community is to build and revitalize urban parks as thriving gathering places for youth, families and adults. Thanks to the generosity and dedication of many individuals and organizations, this vision has been recognized for Houston’s Shady Lane Park.

Jimmy O’Connor is NRPA’s Senior Manager of Grants and Partnerships.