Playa Vista Central Park: A Park Waiting for People

View to the performance shell that functions as the visual icon for the park.

Recently I had posted an article from The Architect's Newspaper about innovative design projects in which Architecture and Landscape Architecture combined in new and innovative ways.  One of the interesting projects in the article was Central Park by the Office of James Burnett in Playa Vista, and, as promised, here are some photos and thoughts on the unique and engaging park.
(Editor's note:  As I was crafting my write-up, Archinet published a nice review of the park, including some great images.  Interestingly, we had some similar feelings about the public-private nature of the park.)

 

The verdict?  Central Park is a new, contemporary park full of promise and dynamic design moves, but suffering right now from something (mostly) out of its control:  It is a park without people.  The feeling after visiting it three or four times is akin to an empty house or a high-design piece of furniture placed behind glass - it is beautiful, striking, but incomplete without its use and users.

Completed in the summer of 2010, the park sits at the eastern end of the Playa Vista development, bordered on the north by a new contemporary commercial development, but surrounded on all other sides by graded, empty plots waiting for eventual completion of the far-reaching Playa Vista Development.  The park itself is comprised of both bold and subtle design moves that create a rich experience for those that are able to find it. The park is broken into three primary activity sectors: active recreation facilities such as a soccer field, basketball court, and Noguchi-esque play areas comprise the western third of the site; an amphitheater flanked by Oak allee strolling gardens and bocce ball courts sit in the center of the park; and a naturalistic stream and reflection pond bookend a playful garden composed of large, angular berms planted with drifts of accents plants on the eastern third of the site.  Geometric bands of trees and pathways run across and diagonally through the site, creating strong circulation and site lines on the site, eventually extruding into the series of angular, engineered berms on the eastern edge of the park. 

Beyond the groundplane geometries and bold berms, the designers spent a lot of consideration on massaging grades on the site to not only manage topography and drainage but separate functions in small, but meaningful ways.  The most noticeable is the sloping amphitheater with the bisecting circulation path (akin to a romantic haha wall) that allows people to traverse the park without being seen.  However, gestures such as lowering the synthetic turf soccer field to help contain activities and retain water, and elevating a sand play area for small children away from foot traffic also create significant experiential gains in the park.

Environmentally, the park also showcases a contemporary ethos.  The drought-tolerant, largely native or near-native plant palette is entirely irrigated with graywater (as is all of Playa Vista), and the amenities double as habitat providers.  Some birds from the nearby Pacific Ocean and Ballona Wetlands are already beginning to colonize the water features.

As is true of all new open spaces in park-starved Los Angeles, early colonizers are soccer players both during the week and weekends.  However, passive users, and casual visitors to the park are either absent or few and far between.  In part, this is a result of the hidden nature of the park (it is not visible from any nearby streets, nor highly publicized), but also from the tenuous nature of privately developed, public access parks such as Central Park.  While the park is open to the public, it was developed by private owners and sits on private land, dictating a different set of concerns and liabilities.  The result is a long list of rules restricting use of the park and a highly-present group of security guards tasked with protecting the park.  While undoubtedly this security has prevented the park from disuse, graffiti, and other forms of human entropy, it clearly engenders a feeling that you are not welcome at this park, especially in larger groups (On visits by myself  I had no problems, but on a visit taking 15 students from a landscape architecture program to see the park's design I was questioned extensively by security before we could tour the park.) The result is a park that wants to be used, but isn't being used yet, despite the carefully designed spaces found within.

Other implementation issues of lesser, and perhaps more typical, degree of a large-scale, recently completed project are also present.  At my last visit in March, at least 4 or 5 Oak trees had failed on the site, potentially due to issues with standing water or drainage.  Also, as a park exploring new design ideas, some are destined to work great, while it appears others may potentially prove short-lived.  For instance, low groundcovers were planted beneath the Oaks in organic geometries to promote a circuituous, modern strolling garden, but are already struggling to establish  properly, and will likely fail due to trampling.  Also, the long-term health and stability of the berms will be interesting to observe, if nothing else because their form seems so dependent upon engineering that may degrade over time.

Overall, Central Park is an impressive project, both in its scope and execution, and is full of rich ideas for designers and visitors.  Not only does it create a number of distinct and carefully constructed spaces, but an obvious financial commitment and dedication to customization by the client and project team has a created a park with a unique and compelling identity.  Now all it needs are the people the project deserves.

Concept Rendering of Park.  Image from Archinect  All Rights Reserved.

View own circulation spine towards berm garden.

View down circulation spine from the playful berm garden.

Redwood allee and horseshoe area

Western entry plaza with depression and extrusion

Oak Allee

View to the sunken soccer field

Contemporary play area recalls a Noguchi playground

View of the reflecting pond and seating.

Stepping stone path across riparian feature.

Stepping stone detail across riparian feature

Geometric strolling garden that may not survive use

One of the dead oaks on site.

View to sports facilities across pond with island tree plantings.

Custom Ipe seating elements provide vantage points for the geometrically planted berms.

Detailed view of Berms planted with succulent and grass mix

Custom seating element echos the topographic moves on site

Custom seating and planter

Star Jasmine covers a custom fence surrounding the performance space.

Integrated signage detailing

Break-up Billboards

Billboard on Venice Blvd just west of the 405.  Image from AdiosLA.  All Rights Reserved. 

Map of Billboard Locations - all locations are tagged in Google Maps for easy directions.  Image from AdiosLA.  All Rights Reserved. 

In the spirit of change and new beginnings, an LA-bred designer brings some year-end cheer to LA with AdiosLA, an art project using billboards and the web to publicly break-up with the City of Los Angeles as he prepares to move to New York for a new job.    Curbed LA has the story:

Designer Jon Jackson grew up in Glendale and has lived in and around Los Angeles his whole life (right now he's in Santa Monica), but recently he decided to take a job as a creative director at an interactive advertising agency in New York, and he's breaking up with his long-time lovah via billboard. You couldn't have texted, Jon? Jackson tells Curbed in an email that he thought this was an appropriate way to say goodbye to "a city where art is always tough to find, but rewarding when you do." He writes: "I hope that there will be a bit of inspiration from the boards, intrigue and definitely a laugh. I think we all have things in our lives big or small that we know we need to 'break up' with." While a friend at a billboard company helped him out with the project, he says that prices are low right now and "I paid what anyone else would pay." Jackson's five designs went up yesterday and will stay up until January 15. You can see some outtakes here.
· Adios LA [Official Site]

Definitely a funny way to say goodbye to your hometown, and a nice way to use an iconic feature of LA to communicate your message, similar to the MAK Center's billboard-based art exhibit earlier this year.  Good luck to Jon in New York,  although I have a feeling LA will be happy to take Jon back if he changes his mind sometime in the future. She is a forgiving mistress. 

30 Seconds of Awesome

Kudos to Streetsblog Los Angeles for posting about "30 seconds of Awesome,"  a recent project by a UCLA Architecture graduate student that basically co-opted the 38 seconds of pedestrian only crossing time at Westwood and Le Conte Boulevards as an urban playground for willing college kids. 

Krisztina Jozsef, a second year graduate student in UCLA's architecture department designed what she termed "30 Seconds of Awesome."  Basically, during the thirty eight seconds of "pedestrian only" time in the intersection of Westwood and Le Conte, a couple of dozen students run out in the intersection and basically play in the street.  First a couple of warm-ups then tug-of-war, water balloons (with a clean-up time), jump rope, hula hoops, limbo and, most impressively, volley ball.  The students were in and out of the intersection before regular car traffic resumed, with Professor Mark Mack wearing what looked to be an orange prison jump suit yelling out the remaining time into a mega phone.

The project was built off the success of ideas such as Parking Day, Critical Mass, Ciclovia, and Flash Mob events that look to reprogram existing urban spaces as pedestrian zones, and create new recreational places to encourage healthy living.  Unfortunately, the project was just a one-time event, but it reminds me a lot of when I was a kid, and the street was used by people for block parties or wiffle ball and football games.  Cars still drove by, but the game would simply pause amid cries of "game off" until the coast was clear, and then resume with a chorus of "game on."  Great idea, and a reminder of ways we can reevaluate our existing neighborhoods. 

More videos, including Yoga and Tug of War, are available on LA StreetsBlog YouTube channel.

Casa Dominguez - Affordable Housings Goes Green

(image from LA Times. All Rights Reserved)

The LA Times had a great profile of Casa Dominguez, an affordable housing development in Compton that is poised to become the first LEED Platinum affordable housing project.  Hopefully the project will serve as an example for how to bring sustainability and green design to people often left behind by the marketplace, and underscore the power design has to change people's outlook.  As the article points out:

Geneva Mason, 23, who is transitioning out of foster care and is 7 months pregnant, began talking about her new lifestyle in the building by making a confession:

"I'm not going to lie. I was once a litterbug," she said. "But ever since I moved into the green environment, I'm more about picking up litter. Once you go through the gates … it's like a little town of its own — lovely, fresh. I'm excited about raising my child here."

Council District Nine Neighborhood City Hall

 View from roof garden of arrival courtyard, stormwater pond, and solar panels.

As part of National Landscape Architecture Month, the SoCal ASLA Chapter hosted a lecture and tour at the new Los Angeles Council District Nine Neighborhood City Hall.  The lecture included a talk by Simon Pastucha from the City of Los Angeles Urban Design Department, and an introduction of the project by the designers and project sponsor, District 9 Councilmember Jan Perry.  Paul Murdoch Architects, Rana Creek, and Pamela Burton and Company designed the project, which offers an interesting approach to green urban infrastructure in the park poor, highly urban area of South Central Los Angeles.  The 37,000 acre site was envisioned as two things: first, a demonstration site for sustainable technologies for the surrounding community, and, second, as a new, safe open space for the community.  The resulting design incorporates a 7,000gallon underground cistern, a stormwater collection pond, green walls, parking lot bioswales, drought-tolerant plantings, solar panels, and a huge, accessible roof garden designed as a new community open space.  Open since January, the project has already been a huge success, and hosted a number of community events.  As Councilmember Perry noted, the site has provided a space for people of all ages to gather at night safely, and has also reintroduced a bit of nature into the highly urban environment.  Both squirrels and butterflies have been seen on the site, which most of us might consider seemingly common elements, but rare are features in District 9.  Great project, and great model for ways to retrofit our built environment.

Stormwater management pond with rain chain

View of the accessible roof garden.  A mix of succulents, grasses, and wildflowers fill the planters.  A strong scent of sage permeated the space when we visited.

View of the parking lot and bioswales used to manage runoff. 

Santa Monica Palisades Garden Walk Update

(image from The Architect's Newspaper.  All Rights Reserved)

James Corner and Field Operations have won the competition for Santa Monica's future 7-acre Palisades Garden Walk.  Best known for their work on the recently completed High Line project in New York, Field Operations was selected for their landscape expertise and strong work in the public process.  Interestingly, teams did not present any concept designs in their interviews, so the design for the Garden Walk should be a work produced with the citizens of Santa Monica.  As for reaction to the selection, Christopher Hawthorne, the architecture critic for the LA Times, had a promising look at the potential for Corner and the project.  Let's hope some of it can be realized over the coming years.

"Women in the Dirt" Trailer

Here is a preview of "Women in the Dirt," an upcoming documentary film exploring women in the field of landscape architecture through the lens of seven of California's most famous women landscape architects.  Should be a great film, and certainly well-deserved recognition of these great designers.

Santa Monica Palisades Garden Walk Finalists Announced

View of Project Site and Context.  Project will take place in large dirt area east of the Santa Monica Pier. 
(image from http://archpaper.com/uploads/image/RFQ_PalisadesGarden.jpg)

I am a bit late on this announcement, but the City of Santa Monica has selected 6 finalists for the high-profile Palisades Garden Walk and Town Square project.   The impressive group includes: Peter Walker and Partners, Gehry Partners, James Corner Field Operations, Studio Works, Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, and SWA Group.

The project will redevelop a large patch of dirt between the Santa Monica Pier and the Santa Monica City Hall (see detailed view of project site to the right - image courtesy of City of Santa Monica).  The project will include 7 acres of park space bordered by future residential development with the goal of creating a dynamic open space that will connect the Santa Monica Civic Center to the rest of the city. The project scope is summed up well by Architect's Newspaper, which first reported the finalists in December:

According to the project’s RFQ, the Town Square, adjacent to Santa Monica’s City Hall, is set to be a space for cultural and civic events, while the Palisades Garden Walk, to its south, will focus on the city’s unique “cultural” and “horticultural” offerings, including a botanical element and water features. Adjacent streetscape improvements, as well as pedestrian and bicycle paths, will connect the parks to the city, while Moore Ruble Yudell’s Santa Monica Village will sit just adjacent. The city has committed $25 million for design and construction of the project, and construction is planned to begin in August 2011.

Funding for the project was approved in June, and interviews will occur this month with a winner chosen sometime shortly thereafter.   The selection panel is said to include Ken Smith and USC architecture dean Qingyun Ma.  A public process will be implemented by the winning team to help develop the final plan.

More coverage of the project can be found at the following websites:
The Dirt
Curbed LA
Santa Monica City Government - RFQ and Base Images

Peter Walker's South Coast

 Here is a little taste of a part of Peter Walker's South Coast Plaza Tower and Town Center Park project.  Sadly I was there a little bit too early in the morning to get the project in its best light, but the sculptural quality of the clipped boxwood hedges remains impressive on my second visit to the project.  The ability of the hedges to create space and exhibit light at different times of the day is really spectacular.

Beyond the rhythmic design quality, though, I was also struck by two thoughts as I wandered through this landscape.  One, I was intrigued by the opportunistic spider webs that have begun to cover the tops of the hedges.  It seemed to reinforce the reality that any design, particularly landscape architecture projects dealing with living organisms as materials, will have unexpected outcomes.  Perhaps some spider infestation was expected, but the large prevalence on the tightly clipped tops of the shrubs suggests that the design's sculpting of the hedges actually generated a more positive condition for spider habitat to flourish.  Second, in this day and age of sustainability concerns, I was left wondering whether projects with large maintenance inputs will be worth maintaining long into Southern California's future?  To be fair to the designers, I am not being critical of their choices as this project is over 20 years old and reflects a different era and attitude.  But, the question remains as to whether the aesthetic quality of the project still merits the costs of its upkeep?  And, how do clients or designers make that decision?  Or, in a related question for issues of preservation, at what point does a project's significance justify the energy it takes to maintain it, not just culturally, but ecologically?  Especially as concerns over water use, restoration of biodiversity, and energy use increase in the near future, Los Angeles's design community and citizenry are faced with the challenge of balancing regenerative design with aesthetic expression in our existing and future designed landscapes.

Orange County Great Park

Is there a bigger project potentially affecting the future of the Los Angeles / Orange County region than the Orange County Great Park?  After hearing all of the press, and getting a chance to listen to designers Ken Smith and Mia Lehrer talk about the project at this year's ASLA Convention, I finally got to visit the initial offering of the park this past October.  While only 27-acres of the 1,347 acre project, the 2009 ASLA Award winning Preview Park project is functioning as a prototyping ground for the rest of the park.  Design ideas, details, and materials are being tested while initial events are being implemented to promote use of the space by nearby residents.

The Balloon Observation platform provides the showpiece and primary activity of the Preview Park.  Guests get a free ride 400 feet in the air on the balloon with great views of the surrounding landscape, and what will eventually become the rest of the park.  As of yet, there is little to see, but the ride does provide an interesting opportunity to understand the true scale of the project.  Protected by large berms covered in deergrass and slopes of reused concrete slab, the element of arrival at the balloon is well conceived.



Also well-conceived are the various site furnishings and details throughout the preview park, including a number of bench, light, and swale concepts.  The only criticism is that they feel a bit incongruous once you leave the observation platform, most likely because different styles, materials, and ideas are being tested all in one location.  Future editing will probably help resolve this lack of cohesion.  The last major element in the Preview Park is the beginning of the graphic  timeline which tells the story of the park's cultural history for visitors.

Overall, the Preview Park intimated a graphic-oriented, highly-detailed, and richly textured future for the Great Park that builds off the history of the former airfield.  Beyond some lack of cohesion across the whole 27-acres, the biggest concern that jumped out to me was the need for ongoing maintenance throughout the park.  While the vivid orange chosen for the balloon and park details effectively brands the project, it is not performing well in an exterior environment.  The faded balloon provides the most notable example of this,although efforts are underway to use a different material and coating to project the longevity of the color.

While the ultimate success (let alone funding) of the massive park is still up in the air, the Preview Park is full of interesting design ideas, and provides great potential for the future outcome of the park.

(images from author, all rights reserved)