Ismaili Center Houston Is a Marvel

Ismaili Center Houston - Eastern Side

One of the best things about Montrose is the diversity of its population. This old neighborhood is located very close to downtown Houston. It runs between the Southwest Freeway and Buffalo Bayou and between Shepherd and Taft Street (for part and then a series of streets moving to the east towards Bagby). The Ismaili Center Houston, the first Ismaili Center in the U.S., is on the edge of Montrose at Montrose Blvd. and W. Dallas St. (2323 Allen Parkway is the address).

The Ismaili Religion

I am quite familiar with the Muslim religion, which began in the 7th Century in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It has spread all over the world and includes about 2 billion people (according to Pew Research), making it the second largest religion after Christianity. The majority of Muslims live in the Asia-Pacific Region, followed by the Middle-East and North Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa has many Muslims, but they are a small part of Europe and the Americas.

I am aware that there are many types of Muslim religions. The largest, by far, are the Sunni Muslims. Shia Muslims are a tiny portion, and most of those are Twelve Tribes, like NYC Mayor Mamdani. The Ismailis are a small part of this minority. An article on The Ismaili suggested that there 12-15 million in the world.

What an Ismaili Center Does

Ismaili Center Houston is the first in the U.S. There are six others that are open, including two in Canada (Toronto and Vancouver), London and Lisbon in Europe, Dubai and Tajikistan. The first two opened simultaneously in London and Vancouver in 1985. The next to open was 1998 in Portugal, and then came the Dubai one 2008. The one in Tajikistan in the city of Dushanbe opened in 2009. and the last one before Houston was Toronto in 2014.

The 7 Centers were all built by the Aga Khan Development Network, which is "dedicated to improving the quality of life of those in need, mainly in Asia and Africa, irrespective of their origin, faith, or gender." AKDN develops human capacity through early childhood development, education and health. It also seeks to overcome natural habitats and to improve the habitats for communities. It builds infrastructure for economic growth, and it boosts heritage, architecture and arts.

A Tour of the Ismaili Center Houston

Houston's Ismaili Center opened in December, and the current leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, Prince Rahim Aga Khan V, was there. He is the 50th Imam, and the 49 columns that support the Ismaili Center Houston represent his predecessors. He followed his father, who died in early 2025 at the age of 88. Born in 1971 with the name Shah Rahim al-Hussaini, he graduated from Brown University. Based in Geneva, he has been part of the AKDN for a while.

Aga Khan V played a big role in the development of in Houston. It was vacant land before, and it took a while to get complete. The Ismaili Center is still working on a few things, like getting a food vendor there, but it has come such a long way.

Gardens

The gardens sit on 9 of the 11 acres, and there are also courts, terraces and fountains. The tour guide pointed out the many types of trees and flowers. The outside is beautiful and is meaningful too. Here is a picture from the website that captures the North side (with downtown Houston to the left):

The gardens were designed by Thomas Woltz of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects, and the Center will be hosting tours of the gardens soon.

Architecture

My father was an architect, but I never developed those skills or much of an interest in the field. Still, I was very impressed with what I learned about the commitment of the developers here. The About Us page on the website discusses the architecture and design of the place in more detail, and the tour included much discussion. Here is a picture from the website that captures some of the many details:

The Entrance

The 150K sq ft building is reflected in a long pond, and this view, captured in the dark, shows the chapel on the second floor behind the wall, which one can see into through the cut-outs (with glass behind).

The architect was Paul Westlake, and the design of the center was U.K.-based Farshid Moussavi, the architect of record is Paul Westlake. McCarthy Building Companies was the general contractor and did the concrete work It broke ground in late 2021.

Art

The website discussed the art collection, which is contemporary and fits in very well with the center. The Aga Khan Museum, which Aga Khan IV founded in 2014 in Toronto across the street from the Ismaili Centre Toronto, loans art.

The only picture that I took was of Life Line, a work by Noor Ali Chagani that was completed in 2009:

This is made from bricks! It uses a very firm object to convey an illusion of flexibility.

Colored walls stood out, and there were interesting pieces by many artists. There is a permanent collection as well as rotating exhibitions. I am a big fan of the art at the Menil, and this captured my attention too.

Mosque

I have done some interfaith work here in Houston, and I have visited several mosques, so this was not my first visit. The tour ended with a visit, and I was impressed. There was no service going on, but what stood out to me was that there is gender-neutral seating. The only way a visitor can see the mosque is to be on a tour. Here it is on the website:

How You Can Get to Know the Ismaili Center Houston

The Ismaili Center website can fill in its visitors.

Its website gives information about visiting it. Visiting days are Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. One can walk the grounds or visit the interior, or one can take a guided tour that is easy to sign up for in advance. The website also shares events.

The Ismaili Center has already received great praise. Texas Monthly shared a piece in December 2025, just before it opened, that was written by Sophia Pirani, who grew up in Houston. She explained the very large concentration of Ismaili Muslims in Houston was a big factor. The words are very educational, and the photos included in it are wonderful.

Kudos to the Ismailis for all that they have done in Houston and across the world!