Overview

• Harris Health’s nine-member board voted unanimously to begin condemnation proceedings to acquire nearly nine acres of Hermann Park for a Ben Taub Hospital expansion.
• Plans call for a new patient tower connected to the existing facility by a sky bridge, which officials say requires an adjacent site for clinical and financial efficiency.
• The targeted parcels are owned by the City of Houston and remain parkland unless and until condemnation occurs, with actions expected to come before the Houston City Council and Harris County Commissioners Court.
• Hermann Park Conservancy leaders and descendants of donor August Warneke oppose repurposing the land, while a Warneke family attorney said lawyers see little chance of blocking condemnation.
• Harris Health frames the project as near-term capacity relief as a full hospital replacement likely awaits a future voter bond an estimated 10–15 years from now, with interim investments planned to keep services operating.