[3][4][5] The park was initially designed as an outdoor art gallery, with square rocks and steps at the center, but no water.

[19][20] The park also features an orange steel sculpture called Contact II by Alexander Liberman.

[21][22][23][24] It was named for William Jamison (1945–1995), an art gallery owner who was a proponent of the Pearl District and died of AIDS-related illness.

[6][10] Many events are held at the park, including the Kids Marching Band, Kids in the Pearl Block Party, Movies in the Pearl, weekly Splashdance "movement-based storytelling" by BodyVox, Pedalpalooza, and Portland Bastille Day festival, complete with the French-inspired Portland Waiters Race.

[37][38] The park has been very popular with locals, and has been considered a modern success in the vein of Pioneer Courthouse Square.

"[42] It's been observed that it's a "water park for kids" that is "nestled among the Pearl's poshest pads and toniest boutiques".

[44] Joe Fitzgibbon of The Oregonian calls Jamison Square "just another symbol of the Pearl District's transformation from industrial neighborhood to sleek, 21st-century community.