North Houston Bike Park parking lots completed

North Houston Bike Park parking lots completed, park set to open in early 2018

TRUEGRID helps future site of the 2020 UCI BMX World Championships save a million dollars by eliminating detention pond

In October 2016, Union Cyclist International (UCI) announced that Houston would host the 2020 UCI BMX World Championships—the world’s largest BMX racing competition—at the yet unbuilt North Houston Bike Park. The Park is part of a 30-acre extreme sports complex that can seat approximately 3,500 guests as a $13-14 million extension of North Houston Skate Park, the largest skate park in North America.

In order to accommodate the anticipated audience that comes with an Olympic-level event, TRUEGRID PRO PLUS was used in the construction of 150,000 sf of 100% permeable parking lots.

A World-Class Location for a Historic Event

“I have no doubt that Houston will provide an exquisite route for riders to compete on, as well as provide outstanding hospitality to the athletes and guests,” said Derek Bouchard-Hall, President CEO of USA Cycling.

The UCI BMX World Championships will be the last stop for BMX racers before the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. “This is probably something that’s going to put Houston on the map for extreme sports,” Sally Bradford, executive director of the Greenspoint Redevelopment Authority told the Houston Chronicle.

True Sustainability

The area was once a wastewater treatment plant that was allowed to grow over. The design team incorporated sustainable elements, and the park is being built to be space-efficient. TRUEGRID was proud to offer a parking solution that worked with the existing green space. 800+ trees were saved in the construction and 500 new trees were planted.

The project was located on a flood plain and therefore required 2.1 acre feet of detention. TRUEGRID PRO PLUS was used for 150,000 sf of parking lot, which allowed for three feet of water storage under the gravel pave. According to OJB Landscape Architecture who helped design the park, a million dollars were saved by putting the detention requirement under the gravel parking instead of a detention pond. This also keeps the park usable and active during seasons of frequent storms.

The North Houston Bike Park is expected to be completed by early 2018, and can be visited on Kuykendahl and Rankin, between Rush Creek and the I-45 feeder road. Admission to the park is free.