HOCKLEY, Texas — Where can you take a train ride, play a soccer match and cool off at a splash pad? One Harris County park offers all that and more.
"We're at Zube Park, which is one of the 54 parks we have in Precinct 4," Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones said.
You can tell that number makes her proud.
"I grew up a few blocks from a park in South Texas where I'm from and I spent so many hours," she said. "When I think of my childhood, I think of the neighborhood park," Briones said. "Our vision is that everyone here in Harris County is within a 10-minute walk from a park."
This one spans 225 acres in Hockley.
"I'm really happy that families here can enjoy it," Briones said. "And other families and other parts of Harris County, if you're coming out to our outlets, just a few minutes from there, come enjoy this gorgeous park."
It’s so big, there are multiple entrances, all with different features. The splash pad is on the south side. That's also where you'll find a jungle gym and a pavilion with gym equipment for the public to use for free.
"I love it because it's all about building community," Briones said.
On the north side of the park, you’ll find another playground and acres of athletic fields. That’s near where Houston Area Live Steamers operate a free, inclusive and accessible train that runs through the park.
"That is a six-mile-long journey," Briones said.
The man after whom the park is named took a much longer journey to get here. Charles Zube came to this part of the world from the Kingdom of Prussia, purchasing a large tract of land in Hockley in the 1800s.
"This park sits on Mr. Zube’s land," Briones explained. "I thank all from the Zube family and the descendants of Mr. Zube who made this spectacular jewel possible for our families here in Harris County."
Beyond recreation, the park provides mitigation, as in flooding.
"The eastern end of the park has a detention basin that flows into Harris County Flood Control efforts here in Hockley," Briones said. "Because we have such challenges with flooding, we're looking at each park as an opportunity to build up our natural infrastructure and have a positive effect and improvement with flood mitigation."
It's a park that has just about everything, which is likely why it draws approximately 50,000 people each year. Now you know you can join them at Zube Park.
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