Downtown Austin got something in June 2026 that urban parks advocates have been working toward for years: a connected, off-street trail corridor linking the heart of the city to Lady Bird Lake, entirely on foot, without a single busy street crossing.

Waterloo Greenway Phase II: The Confluence officially opened on June 6, 2026, a $91.5 million, 13-acre urban park built along Waller Creek between 4th Street and Lady Bird Lake. It is the second major phase of a project that has been reshaping the Waller Creek corridor through downtown Austin, and it sets up Phase III - from 4th to 12th Street - as the next leg.

What the Greenway Adds to the City

The numbers tell part of the story. 1,600 new trees and 200,000 native plants now line the greenway, providing shade, habitat, and stormwater absorption in a part of the city that previously offered very little of either. An 800-foot boardwalk runs embedded in Waller Creek itself, putting walkers and runners directly in the water corridor rather than beside it.

Three lattice bridges cross the creek at different points, giving the park its distinctive connective geometry. And underneath the visible landscape, a first-of-its-kind downtown biofiltration pond treats stormwater from 26.2 surrounding acres before it reaches the creek. For a city that sits downstream of its own growth, that kind of infrastructure investment is not cosmetic. It is functional at a meaningful scale.

The Trail Connection That Changes the Daily Calculus

For Austinites who live or work downtown and have wanted a green, walkable route to Lady Bird Lake, the trail connection is the change that matters most day-to-day. It is now possible to walk from Waterloo Park to the lake without stepping onto a high-traffic street. In a city that has spent years trying to build safer pedestrian infrastructure, a completed connection like this is worth noting.

The Waterloo Greenway project has described its vision as connecting all of Austin's people to nature, art, culture, and each other. Phase II moves that vision from language into concrete ground. Phase III will extend the greenway corridor north from 4th Street to 12th Street, carrying the same design principles deeper into the city's core.

For Barton Springs swimmers, trail runners along the lake, and families looking for a nature-rooted afternoon that does not require leaving the urban core, the greenway is now open. Check out the Waterloo Greenway website for trail maps, upcoming events, and information on how to support the park's community programming as Phase III moves forward.