LA NOW 6: WILSHIRE DENSIFICATION

L.A.NOW 99% Preservation and 1% Densification: A case for urban density along the Wilshire corridor as a strategy to preserve the urban character of the city, improve the quality of life, and protect the environment for LA’s current and incoming 1.5 million people by 2050

Wilshire Boulevard

99% PRESERVATION AND 1% DENSIFICATION A CASE FOR URBAN DENSITY ALONG THE WILSHIRE CORRIDOR AS A STRATEGY TO PRESERVE THE URBAN CHARACTER OF THE CITY, IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE, AND PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT FOR LA’S CURRENT AND INCOMING 1.5 MILLION PEOPLE BY 2050

UCLA Sustainable LA Grand Challenge The NOW Institute UCLA Department of Architecture and Urban Design

Credits Project Director Thom Mayne - Founder, The Now Institute Project Manager Eui-Sung Yi - Director, The Now Institute Design Lily Bakhshi Sheppard Research and Writing Rebecca Choi Ryan Doyle Annie Eby Project Development Amanda Gunawan Luyan Shen Yake Wang Joel Wong

First published in the United States in 2016, by the NOW Institute.

Copyright Š 2016, by the NOW Institute. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be re-produced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photo-copying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

Content

99% PRESERVATION AND 1% DENSIFICATION: A CASE FOR UBAN DENSITY ALONG THE WILSHIRE CORRIDOR AS A STRATEGY TO PRESERVE THE URBAN CHARACTER OF THE CITY, IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE, AND PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT FOR LA’S CURRENT AND INCOMING 1.5 MILLION PEOPLE BY 2050 2-7

8 - 11

Introduction

Los Angeles County Growth Pattern

12 - 13

Wilshire Boulvard Cities + Neighborhoods

14 - 15

Wilshire Boulvard Metro Purple Line

16 - 17

Wilshire Boulvard Meseums + Cultural Institutions

18 - 19

Wilshire Boulvard Open Space

20 - 21

Wilshire Boulvard Residential

22 - 25

Wilshire Boulvard Distribution Models

26 - 57

Wilshire Boulvard Model 03 - Distributed

58 - 71

Wilshire Boulvard Model 06 - Centralized

72 - 73

Conclusion

74 - 77

The Now Institute

THE NOW INSTITUTE Research and Graphic Support 2014 - 2015

Faculty

Thom Mayne Eui-Sung Yi Andrew Liang

Assistant

Bridget Ackeifi Xuequi Bai Samuel Bent Omar Haque Shobitha Jacob Chenguang Li Andrew Liang Xi Liao Marieh Mehrannezhad Apurva Purandare Andre Simapranata Jiani Song Tuo Sun Wei-Chieh Tsai Duo Wang Jue Wang Runzhi Wang Shuoyang Wang Kun Yang Hun Tao Yu

Advisors

Hitoshi Abe, UCLA Alan Berger, MIT Heidi Creighton, Buro Happold Neil Denari, UCLA John Enright, SCI-Arc Bill Fain, Johnson Fain David Herd, Buro Happold John Kaliski Andrew Liang, USC Michael LoGrande, Los Angeles Planning Director Greg Lynn, UCLA Erin McConahey, Arup Mark McVay, SmithGroup JJR Matt Petersen, City of Los Angeles Albert Pope, Rice University Stephanie Reich, City of West Hollywood Roger Sherman, UCLA Warren Techentin, USC Charles Waldheim, Harvard University

ESRI

Joe Liao Jinwu Ma Pascal Mueller Brooks Patrick Paul Yoshitomi

Acknowledgements

99% PRESERVATION AND 1% DENSIFICATION: A CASE FOR URBAN DENSITY ALONG THE WILSHIRE CORRIDOR AS A STRATEGY TO PRESERVE THE URBAN CHARACTER OF THE CITY, IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE, AND PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT FOR LA’S CURRENT AND INCOMING 1.5 MILLION PEOPLE BY 2050 University of California Los Angeles

Associate Vice Chancellor for Environment and Sustainability Sustainable LA Grand Challenge Mark Gold

Director, Sustainable LA Grand Challenge Cassie Rauser

Martin Brennan Isaac Thomas Brown Jennifer Chan Gonzalo Cortes Alex Hall Janine Henri Juan Matute Katie Mika Karthik Nithyanandam Brianna Pagan Stephanie Pincetl Erik Porse Katharine Reich Andy Rutkowski Brad Shaffer Richie Wirz

California Energy Commission

Dave Aschuckian Perry Fletcher Steven Mac Cam-Giang Nguyen

Southern California Association of Governments Simon Choi Jung Seo Frank Wen Ying Zhou

Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning Tina Fung

Morphosis Architects

A CASE FOR 2050 SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH A DENSER, MORE CONNECTED LOS ANGELES

99%

PRESERVATION

1%

DENSIFICATION

2

THE PROBLEMS FACING THE WORLD ARE MORE COMPLEX THAN EVER BEFORE AND REQUIRES DESIGN STRATEGIES AT AN URBAN SCALE

When the Now Institute joined the UCLA Grand Challenge in 2014, the Institute’s focus on Los Angeles urbanism perfectly coincided with Grand Challenge’s ambitious sustainability goals. With their goal to reach 100% renewable energy and 100% locally sourced water by 2050, we accepted their invitation with enthusiasm and engaged their broader mission to enhance the county’s ecosystem and promote human health. When we joined the Grand Challenge’s Spatial and Discipline Integration Team, our role was not at first glance self-evident. However, as physical designers trained in architecture and urban design we knew that we’d uniquely contribute with design ideas.

For over a decade, The Now Institute has analyzed Los Angeles through a series entitled L.A. Now. Each study focused on both the city’s issues and assets, which led to numerous design proposals ranging from speculative to practical in scope. The work presented here builds from the knowledge gained from the L.A. Now series and is perhaps the Institute’s most decisive project proposal to date.

Our proposal generates a platform for an interdisciplinary approach toward achieving the city’s sustainability goals. Yet beyond provoking conversation, our design asserts an alternative future for Los Angeles; where the city’s projected population growth of 1.5 million by 2050 will be housed in 1% of the county’s existing land. Confident that design has a meaningful role to play in the developmental process, the following proposal offers promising strategies to transform Los Angeles into a sustainable model for 21st century cities.

Introduction to The Project The County of Los Angeles, the nation’s most populous county to date, has emerged as one of the third largest metropolitan economies in the world. Populated with over 10 million people spread across 4,751 square miles of arid land, this mega city has long been celebrated for its economic and cultural diversity, as well as for its rich and varied landscapes. From the orange groves, coastal ridges to the San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles has continued to draw people to the 88 incorporated cities that make up the county. However, by 2050, the county’s population is expected to grow by 15%, placing significant pressure on the existing infrastructure that is barely able to accommodate its current population. In an effort to ameliorate the environmental effects of the county’s growing population, this project has focused on Wilshire Blvd. as an experimental zone, capable of advancing the county’s stunted regional policy on its open space, energy, and water systems.

Most remarkably, this demonstration project will capitalize on the county’s existing transportation infrastructure, in particular the long-awaited Purple Line extension by Metro, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Los Angeles and The Boulvard The City of Los Angeles, the largest of the county’s 88 cities, is widely accepted as the center for fantasy, fiction and the mediated image. This popular imagination, from David Hockney’s Mulholland Drive to Ed Ruscha’s Every Building on the Sunset Strip has long included the boulevard

4

as an intrinsic feature of the city’s urban identity. As early as the 1900s, decades before the entire city was linked through east-west and north-south boulevards, the Pacific Electric Railway was busy laying down an interconnected transit system that promised the possibility of a perfectly balanced urban and rural life. Responding in droves to enterprising developer’s call to “Live in the Country and Work in the City,” the city’s population grew exponentially.

In empirical terms, the effects of this early developmental history are by now well known: transportation infrastructure built to service a decentralized growth pattern, zoning practices that sanctioned the preferences of private development, and the long and storied water wars that helped expand the suburbs to a metropolitan scale.

By the 1960s, Los Angeles had become the model of planned decentralization, real estate speculation, isolated gated communities, and ever-expanding edge cities, attracting scholarly inquiry from the field of urban planning, urban geography, and cultural studies among many others.

The result has been a rich array of theoretical interpretations and extensive studies, yet the literature has been narrowly conceived and specific to the field where Los Angeles is contemplated. While each of these studies has brought new salience in describing the city through its diverse economic, geographic and environmental processes, a synthetic and focused vision plan has not been made since Calvin Hamilton’s Concept LA, 1970.

The Proposal The Now Institute in partnership with the UCLA Grand Challenges intends to fill this gap. For the first time in nearly fifty years, The Now Institute has produced a strategic plan than centers its focus on Wilshire Blvd.

The following proposal transforms Wilshire Blvd. into a stabilizing and generative spine for the city of Los Angeles. Unlike any other east-west line, Wilshire Blvd. invokes the city’s mythic origins to the Tongva people who first carved out the road to transport the natural resources of the La Brea pits to the coastline. Appropriated by the Spanish settlers, El Camino Viejo—as they called it—bisected and linked the city’s original five ranchos. Ultimately, the land

that flanked the road was cultivated by Henry Gaylord Wilshire into agricultural land and further subdivided for residential development. For each of these eras, three universal patterns are evident: a reliance on the boulevard to transport, connect, and organize. In this way, the boulevard was a remarkable platform linking the city’s inhabitants to its natural environs to the west as well as to emergent economies incrementally growing east-bound.

The Now Institute considers this iterative pattern legible in the Boulevard’s history and recasts them in our contemporary context. Today, the county anticipates a population growth of 11.5 million people in 2050. Given the right framework, the county’s major challenges to manage increased population, sustain the environment and build a robust and reliable transportation infrastructure can be obtained. The strategy offered here, is to enhance the density along Wilshire Blvd. while leaving the rest of the city untouched.

In quantifiable terms, this proposal intends to preserve 99% of the existing city from further development and intensify 1% of the county’s land along Wilshire Blvd. In this way, this proposal recalls Hamilton’s Concept LA, 1970’s effort to increase density and develop specific nodes. While not explicitly naming, yet clearly drawing from Doxiadis’ concept of ‘ekistics,’ Hamilton hoped his central nodes would branch out like a living organism and resuscitate the entire region, one cluster at a time.

The reason why Concept LA was never carried was to a greater or lesser extent a matter of social miscalculation. Never could he have realized the extent to which the slow-growth movement would gain momentum. While acknowledging the most promising component of Concept LA, its transit focused land-use policy, The Now Institute also focuses on transportation, but radically departs from Hamilton’s vision by reimagining the city in section rather than in plan. In other words, the city has reached its limits of outward growth. Thus, this proposal presents a new upward growth model that celebrates the tower, the skyscraper and the high-rise as utopian typologies rather than generic representations of a global economy.

6

THE PROBLEM THE COUNTY’S POPULATION WILL INCREASE BY 1.5 MILLION PEOPLE BY 2050

Already the largest county in the nation by a factor of two, by 2050 Los Angeles County’s population will have grown 15% to 11.5 million people. The size of the County’s total land mass has an enormous capacity to support this anticipated population growth. Not only could the entire U.S. Population fit within the boundaries of the County, the population density would be less than the desnsity per square mile found in Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

While perhaps no one would advocate for such an extreme scenario, without focused design intelligence Los Angeles could easily pursue sprawl as an urban growth model.

Rather, this proposal offers an alternative to the distended outward expansion­—albeit celebrated for giving birth to the suburbs and the low-slung typology of the single family residence—this project considers upward growth and the radical densification of just 1% of the county’s land as the most environmentally sustainable urban intervention.

1907

1950

The following pages present three growth scenarios: the first two scenarios demonstrate an existing sprawling condition that will conitnue without intelligence design and policy alternatives. The last strategy reveals the Institute’s intervention that calls for guided growth and the densification of Wilshire Blvd. from downtwon to Santa Monica.

2020

Los Angeles Metropolitan Area Urban Growth

LOS ANGELES COUNTY current Growth pattern Below are three distinct growth scenarios. Each growth model are individually valid and could feasibly be carried out with complimentary sustainability plans. However, we believe Strategy 2 will support the County’s long-term sustainability goals. Using a guided growth model, we intend to preserve 99%

Existing Condition

of LA County’s built and natural environments from development, as well as accommodate the county’s roughly 1.5 million anticipated population growth on 1% of the county’s land; along the Wilshire Corridor—an area uniquely primed for radical densification.

Current Trajectory: Sprawl

8

WITH UNGUIDED GROWTH UP TO 150,000 ACRES WILL BE LOST TO DEVELOPMENT. The exponential rate of job growth in the Inland areas coupled with the rising costs of coastal areas has made sprawl the economic de facto growth pattern. On the most basic level, a 15% population increase will render a 15% increase in urbanized areas. As a result, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) projects that this increased densification will result in the loss of 150,000 acres to sprawling development.

Whilshire 2050 Growth Strategies

LOS ANGELES COUNTY Strategic Growth Plan

DENSIFIED

PRESERVING

COUNTY LAND

NATURE & NEIGHBORHOOD

1% 1

99%

2

Strategy : Urban Infill

Strategy : Intense Densification

URBAN INFILL PREVENTS ENVIRONMENTAL DEGREDATION, BUT IT MAY DETROY NEIGHBORHOOD CHARACTER.

INTENSE DENSIFICATION IS ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE WITHOUT COMPROMISING NEIGHBORHOOD CHARACTER.

In order to increase density evenly across existing urban areas, smart growth advocates began to envision development around transit-oriented centers. As an ambitious urban infill strategy, TOD centers can help prevent environmental degradation, but it is politically unappealing because traditionalists believe it destroys neighborhood character.

High-density, transit-oriented development centers along Wilshire Blvd. provide a sustainable quality of life that competes with the lifestyle promoted by traditional neighborhood preservationists. Not only do TOD centers reduce energy and water consumption by serving multi-family units rather than single-family residences, they can significantly reduce the County’s CO2 emission and overall carbon footprint by forging access to public transportation and other ride-sharing services.

THE PROPOSAL

10

Intense Densification of Wilshire Blvd.

DENSIFY

1%

COUNTY LAND

TO SUSTAIN

99% LIFESTYLE

12

DIVERSITY / WILSHIRE BLVD. LOOKING EAST

Whilshire 2050 Now

OUR BROAD ASSESSMENT: WWB, WHY WILSHIRE BLVD?

Wilshire Blvd. is a cross-section of Los Angeles, spanning three cities and 18 neighborhoods

Wilshire Blvd. is uniquely primed to serve as a generative spine for the County of Los Angeles, and currently links 18 neighborhoods and 3 cities: Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, and Los Angeles.

18

3

CITIES

NEIGHBORHOODS bever ly h i l l s 34k popula t i on 6 k ppl/s q m i

b rentwood

westwood 51k population 1 4 k ppl/sq mi veter ans c entur y admin c ity west los angeles

p i c o - r ob er t s on

b ever l y g r ove carthay

fairfax

h a n c oc k park

mid-wilshire 44k p op u l a t i on 16k p p l /s q m i

k or ea t ow n 105k p op u l a t i on 39k p p l /s q m i

w i n d s or square

w es t l a k e 101k p op u l a t i on 37k p p l /s q m i do wn to w n l os a n g e l e s 72k p o p ul a ti o n 12k p p l / s q mi

sawtelle Sa nta Monic a 90k p o p ul ation 11k p p l /sq mi

Santa Monica

Beverly Hills

Los Angeles

14

TRANSPORTATION / TRANSIT HUB

Whilshire 2050 Now

WWB: ACCESS

Wilshire Blvd. will support the purple line

With the Purple Line extension, 15.9 miles—from the beach to downtown— can be traversed in 25 minutes. The Purple Line will serve 20 station stops, connecting diverse neighborhoods from Koreatown to Westwood.

15.8

20

MILES

STATION STOPS

existing

SED PO PRO NSION E EXT

purple line

12 minutes

17 minutes

20 minutes

gr a nd pa r k

p ic o m e tr o c e nt e r

w e st l a k e

v e r m on t

no r ma nd i e

w e st e r n

la brea

fa i r fa x

l a c ie ne g a

r od e o

c e n tu r y c it y

c e n tu r y c it y

ucla

v a hos p i ta l

b u nd y

2 6t h s t

1 6t h s t

4 th s t

p e r s hi ng s q ua r e

1/2 Mile Radius

32 minutes Travel Time

Purple L i ne S t a t i ons

16

INSTITUTIONS / LACMA-CHRIS BURDEN URBAN LIGHT

gr a nd pa r k

p e r s hi ng s q ua r e

p ic o m e tr o c e nt e r

w e st l a k e

v e r m on t

no r ma nd i e

w e st e r n

la brea

fa i r fa x

l a c ie ne g a

r od e o

c e n tu r y c it y

c e n tu r y c it y

ucla

v a hos p i ta l

b u nd y

2 6t h s t

1 6t h s t

4 th s t

a + d mu s e u m s c i- a r c

w al t d is n e y c on c e rt ha ll mo c a

g ri e r - mu s s e r m u s e u m

w e s t c o as t un i v e r s i t y

ko r e a n am e ri c a n na t i ona l mu s e u m

gno m on s c ho ol of v fx

hol oc a u s t mu s e u m

la c m a

p a c i fic d e s i gn c e n te r

c e d ars s i n ai

be v e rl y hi ll s hi gh s c ho o l

c onc o r d e l aw s c ho ol

ha mm e r mu s e u m

u ni v e r s it y hi gh s c ho ol

th e ge t ty

u ni v e rs i ty p od i a tr y g ro u p

sa nt a mon i c a c o l l e ge

Wilshire Boulevard is an educational corridor Holding the County’s largest universities, museums and cultural institutions

Whilshire 2050 Now

WWB: INSTITUTIONS

Along Wilshire Blvd., Angelenos and visitors can access the county’s major institutions such as UCLA and LACMA. The county’s universities alone hold more than 120,000 college students who each rely on the Blvd. The diagram below reveals a handful of the over 100 museums and cultural institutions along the Blvd.

Industry

Institution

18

OPEN SPACE / MAC ARTHUR PARK

gr a nd pa r k

p e r s hi ng s q ua r e

p ic o m e tr o c e nt e r

w e st l a k e

v e r m on t

no r ma nd i e

w e st e r n

la brea

fa i r fa x

l a c ie ne g a

r od e o

c e n tu r y c it y

c e n tu r y c it y

ucla

v a hos p i ta l

b u nd y

2 6t h s t

1 6t h s t

4 th s t

grand park la

p e r sh i n g sq u a r e

ma c a r th ur p a r k

r o s e d a le c em e t er y

h a nc o c k p a r k

la cienega park

b e v er l y g a r d e ns p a r k

r a nc h o p a r k

la country club

l a n a ti o n a l c e me ta r y

b r e nt wo o d c o u n tr y c l ub

m e mo r i a l p a r k

t o n g va p a r k

p a l is a de s p a r k

Wilshire Blvd. provides access to open space

78% of the population living, working, or visiting Wilshire Blvd. are within walking distance of public open space.

This is an almost 30% improvement from the county’s average of 49%.

Whilshire 2050 Now

WWB: OPEN SPACE

Open Space

20

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT / WHILSHIRE CORRIDOR

Whilshire 2050 Now

WWB: ECONOMIES

FOUR CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICTS CAN BE IDENTIFIED ALONG WILSHIRE BLVD. Increasing residential density in thee four central business districts identified below will support our idea to create multi-nodal commercial, retail and employment opportunities along the Wilshire Blvd.

330K

22 Commercial gr a nd pa r k

p e r s hi ng s q ua r e

p ic o m e tr o c e nt e r

w e st l a k e

v e r m on t

no r ma nd i e

w e st e r n

la brea

fa i r fa x

l a c ie ne g a

SQUARE MILES

r od e o

c e n tu r y c it y

c e n tu r y c it y

ucla

v a hos p i ta l

b u nd y

2 6t h s t

1 6t h s t

4 th s t

2015 POPULATION

Multifamily Single Family

6 DISTRIBUTION MODELS

Reveal How Wilshire Blvd. can support 1 million new residents Via tod centers The following 6 distribution models reveal how Wilshire Blvd. can support TOD centers. We endorse models 3 and 6 as the most compelling and realizable models and are highlighted in orange.

01

EVEN DISTRIBUTION This model considers an even distribution of the county’s population along the entire length of Wilshire. This includes areas between subway stations.

02

ANCHORED DEVELOPMENT

22

This model considers 20 developments anchored on each subway station. Each station absorbs 8.3% of the new population

03

DEVELOPMENT OF 5 CENTERS Multi-nodal development where 5 primary development centers: Santa Monica, Century City, LACMA, Koreatown and Downtown absorbs 68% of the new population

Whilshire 2050 Densifying the Blvd.

Downtown

Westlake

Koreatown

Windsor Square

La Brea

Fairfax / LACMA

La Cienega

Beverly Hills

Century City

Westwood

Bundy Drive

Santa Monica 8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3% 8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3% 8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8.3%

8%

7%

8%

12%

5%

8%

6%

8%

8%

10%

12%

83K

83K

80K

83K

83K

70K

83K

83K

80K

83K

83K

120K

83K

83K

50K

83K

83K

80K

83K

83K

8% 80K

83K

83K

60K

N o te: Percenta g es i nd i cate per c entage of total 2 0 5 0 population p r oj ec t i on , i .e. a p er c en t a g e of 1.5 m i l l i on p eop l e

83K

83K

80K

83K

83K

80K

83K

83K

100K

83K

83K

120K

DISTRIBUTION MODELS

04

(CONTINUED)

DEVELOPMENT OF 4 CENTERS Multi-nodal development where Four primary development centers: Santa Monica, Century City, Koreatown, and Downtown absorbs 54% of the new population

05

DEVELOPMENT OF 3 CENTERS

24

Multi-nodal development where Three primary development centers; Santa Monica, Century City, and Downtown absorbs 100% of the new population

06

DEVELOPMENT OF 2 CENTERS Nodal development where two centers: Century City and Downtown absorbs 100% of the new population

9%

8%

8%

16%

5%

8% 2% 6% 6% 8% 11% 13%

30%

0% 0% 30%

0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 40%

0%

0%

0%

40%

0%

0%

0%

0%

0%

0%

0%

60%

90K

300K 80K 80K 160K

300K

400K 50K 80K 20K

60K

60K

80K

110K

130K

400K

600K

Whilshire 2050 Densifying the Blvd.

Downtown

Westlake

Koreatown

Windsor Square

La Brea

Fairfax / LACMA

La Cienega

Beverly Hills

Century City

Westwood

Bundy Drive

Santa Monica

26

03

DEVELOPMENT OF 5 CENTERS Multi-nodal development where 5 primary development centers: Santa Monica, Century City, LACMA, Koreatown and Downtown absorbs 68% of the new population

6 DISTRIBUTION MODELS

Reveal how Wilshire Blvd. can support 1 million new residents via Tod Centers

8% 80K

7% 70K

8% 80K

12% 120K

5% 50K

8% 80K

8% 80K

6% 60K

N o te: Percenta g es i nd i cate per c entage of total 2 0 5 0 population p r oj ec t i on , i .e. a p er c en t a g e of 1.5 m i l l i on p eop l e

8% 80K

Downtown

Westlake

Koreatown

Windsor Square

La Brea

Fairfax / LACMA

La Cienega

Beverly Hills

Century City

Westwood

Bundy Drive

Santa Monica

The following 6 distribution models reveal how Wilshire Blvd. can support TOD centers. We endorse models 3 and 6 as the most compelling and realizable models and are highlighted in orange.

8% 80K

10% 100K

12% 120K

PROPOSED 2050

+1M

C2

POPULATION

Center 1

Center 2

SANTA MONICA

CENTURY CITY

20%

p op ula t ion

13%

po pu l ati o n

l a ci en eg a 2%

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

28

C1

(TOTAL 1.3M)

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed

MODEL 03: THE FIVE CENTERS PLAN DISTRIBUTES POPULATION GROWTH ACROSS THE LENGTH OF THE BLVD. WITH HIGH-DENSITY CLUSTERING AROUND 5 SELECT TRANSIT CENTERS. By distributing TOD centers along 5 existing centers, we aim for increased density within 5 select centers indicated as C1-5 below.

All metro stops between the 5 centers will maintain a relatively even growth pattern.

DISTRIBUTED C3

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

Center 3

Center 4

Center 5

LACMA

KOREATOWN

DOWNTOWN

7%

popu lation

18%

p o pu l ati o n

36%

po pu l ati o n

p op ula t ion

20%

Center 1

SANTA MONICA

l a ci en eg a 2%

POPULATION

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

C1

+1M

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

30

PROPOSED 2050

C2

(TOTAL 1.3M)

SANTA MONICA IN MODEL 3, SANTA MONICA’S POPULATION WILL INCREASE SIXFOLD, ABSORBING AN ADDITIONAL 200,000 PEOPLE Santa Monica has historically resisted growth and change. This strategy would increase the density from about 13,000 people per square mile along the corridor to 75,000.

Because Santa Monica has one of the mildest climates in LA County, this would dampen the associated energy consumption increase that could be expected if these 200,000 people moved to the Inland Valley, which currently has the highest anticipated growth rate.

DISTRIBUTED C3

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

32

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed Open Space 20% - 20 M sqft

Program

Residential

Performative Green Traditional Green Active Green Residential Commercial Institutional Civic

40% - 43 M sqft (gfa) 1200 ft (height) 86500 units (people)

Recreation

Performative Green Purple Line Bike Route Pedestrain Promenade

Commercial

30% - 32 M sqft (gfa) 350 ft (height)

Roads Civic

4% - 4.5 sqft (gfa)

Institutional

5% - 5 M sqft (gfa)

Sustainability

1% - 2.5 M sqft (gfa)

Metro Station

Road System Highway Purple Line

34

2015 POPULATION

43K DENSITY

13K

PER SQUARE MILE

SANTA MONICA

2050 POPULATION

263K +220K ADDED

DENSITY

80K

PER SQUARE MILE

Center 2

CENTURY CITY

po pu l ati o n

13%

l a ci en eg a 2%

POPULATION

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

C1

+1M

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

36

PROPOSED 2050

C2

(TOTAL 1.3M)

CENTURY CITY IN MODEL 3, CENTURY CITY’S POPULATION WILL INCREASE TO AN ADDITIONAL 150,000 PEOPLE, SIX TIMES ITS CURRENT DENSITY OF 24,000.

Multiple building typologies are used to serve the different land-uses and population increases with contextual sensitivity. While the mixeduse towers play a big role in absorbing the population within a smaller footprint, a transitional typology of medium density housing is introduced between the existing single-family zones and the large open spaces, providing privacy for the residents. Ribbon buildings act as connective tissue tying the two parks together and grounding the periphery towers.

DISTRIBUTED C3

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

38

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed

Existing high-density towers and iconic buildings are kept as part of Century City’s identity, such as the Century Plaza Towers, Century City Mall, and the Century Fox Studios.

As the Purple Line parts from along Wilshire Blvd to grasp the center of Century City, the Avenue of the Stars stretches northwards past Santa Monica Blvd to Wilshire Blvd, providing direct access between Wilshire and the Purple Line station.

A sky-tram spanning the stretch of the commercial hub is introduced for efficient non-car travel between north and south. The significant increase in population density in Century City allows for the surrounding areas to maintain their current state and character.

Ribbon Buildings

Towers, Medium Density, Multi Family

Open Space

RESIDENTIAL

5% - 20 M sqft (gfa)

Residential

50% - 187 M sqft (gfa)

COMMERCIAL

CIVIC Maintained Existing Buildings INSTITUTION

INDUSTRIAL

Open Space Commercial

SUSTAINABILITY

35% - 131 M sqft (gfa)

MIXED USE

OPEN SPACE

Tramline

Pedestrian Network

Institutional

2% - 7.5 M sqft (gfa)

Industrial

7% - 26 M sqft (gfa)

Mixed Use

1% - 7.5 M sqft (gfa)

Metro Station

Hardscape Layout

40

2015 POPULATION

20K DENSITY

12K

PER SQUARE MILE

CENTURY CITY

2050 POPULATION

190K +170K ADDED

DENSITY

110K

PER SQUARE MILE

l a ci en eg a 2%

POPULATION

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

C1

+1M

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

42

PROPOSED 2050

C2

(TOTAL 1.3M)

LACMA LACMA DISTRICT, A CULTURAL CAPITAL WITH A POPULATION OF 41,000 INCREASES TO A DENSITY EQUAL TO BROOKLYN’S. Visibly identifiable by shape and skin, the various architectural typologies which define the programs of K-12 education, cultural hubs, housing, and commercial space are uniquely expressed by their connection (or disconnection) to the ground plane. The expanded cultural program is buried under the “green blanket”. Hidden beneath the surface, this layer reaches across the site with only small perforations, allowing it to act as a grounding point for all the other program to interact.

DISTRIBUTED C3

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

Center 3

LACMA 7%

popu lation

44

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed Water Storage

Towers, Offices, Multi Family

Ribbon Buildings Institutions

Open Space 43% - 20 M sqft

Open Space

Commercial and Institutions

Road System Residential

13% - 6.2M sqft (gfa)

Commercial

26% - 12 M sqft (gfa)

Pedestrian Network

Institutional

10% - 4.7 M sqft (gfa)

Mixed Use

8% - 3.4 M sqft (gfa)

Metro Station

Combined System

46

2015 POPULATION

30K DENSITY

15K

PER SQUARE MILE

LACMA

2050 POPULATION

70K

+40K ADDED

DENSITY

35K

PER SQUARE MILE

l a ci en eg a 2%

POPULATION

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

C1

+1M

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

48

PROPOSED 2050

C2

(TOTAL 1.3M)

KOREATOWN KOREATOWN, THE DENSEST NEIGHBORHOOD IN LA COUNTY, TRIPLES ITS DENSITY TO NEARLY THAT OF NYC’S UPPER EAST SIDE. The mat-building is a hybrid typology that is composed of program elements and open spaces, creating a system that merges both components. The program includes residential, commercial, offices, schools, community facilities and infrastructure. The open space components can be located on different levels, creating different identities according to the adjacent functions. Traditional green parks on the ground floor, private gardens within dwelling units, and urban agriculture and recreation space spread across an interconnected roof garden.

C3

DISTRIBUTED

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

Center 4

KOREATOWN 18%

p o pu l ati o n

50

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed Higher Density

Open Space 3% - 3 M sqft

Residential

30% - 24M sqft (gfa)

Elevated Connection Bridges Pedestrian Paths

Roof Floor Commercial

55% - 51 M sqft (gfa)

Performative Green Traditional Green Active Green

Ground Floor Office - Commercial Residential Parking Services

Ground Floor Mixed Use

Parking Commercial Traditional Park

10% - 10 M sqft (gfa)

Institutional

2% - 2 M sqft (gfa)

Roads Metro Station

Wilshire Purple Line Normandie

52

2015 POPULATION

75K DENSITY

30K

PER SQUARE MILE

KOREATOWN

2050 POPULATION

245K +170K ADDED

DENSITY

100K

PER SQUARE MILE

l a ci en eg a 2%

POPULATION

ce nt ury ci ty 6%

C1

+1M

ce nt ury ci ty 7%

bu n dy 5%

26th s t 5%

16th s t 5%

4th s t 5%

54

PROPOSED 2050

C2

(TOTAL 1.3M)

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES DOWNTOWN IS ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING AREAS OF LA, AND WILL RECEIVE A 400,000 PERSON INCREASE, MULTIPLYING ITS CURRENT DENSITY BY SEVEN.

DISTRIBUTED C3

5

C4

g ra nd park 9%

pe rs h in g s qu are 9%

CENTERS

m etro cen ter 9%

pi co 9%

verm on t 6%

n or man di e 6%

w es tern 6%

l a br ea 3%

f ai rf ax 2%

C5

2050 population

2015

Center 5

DOWNTOWN 36%

po pu l ati o n

56

Whilshire 2050 Model 03 - Distributed Built Spaces

Open Space 3% - 3 M sqft

Residential

30% - 24M sqft (gfa)

Green Spaces

Hwy.101

3rd 6th

St.

Wilshire 6th

Figueroa

Figueroa Flower

Wilshire 7th 7thstSt.

101

McArthur Park

JM JWWood Wood

Commercial

Flower

McArthur Park

8th 8thstSt.

Olympic Olympic

55% - 51 M sqft (gfa)

7th Street station

7th Street Stations 110

Hwy.110

Infrastructure

Hwy.10 10

Mixed Use

10% - 10 M sqft (gfa)

Institutional

2% - 2 M sqft (gfa)

Project Site

Metro Station

58

2015 POPULATION

70K DENSITY

22K

PER SQUARE MILE

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

2050 POPULATION

470K +400K ADDED

DENSITY

145K

PER SQUARE MILE

60

06

DEVELOPMENT OF 2 CENTERS Nodal development where two centers: Century City and Downtown absorbs 100% of the new population

6 DISTRIBUTION MODELS

Reveal how Wilshire Blvd. can support 1 million new residents via Tod Centers

0%

0%

0%

40% 400K

0%

0%

0%

0%

0%

Downtown

Westlake

Koreatown

Windsor Square

La Brea

Fairfax / LACMA

La Cienega

Beverly Hills

Century City

Westwood

Bundy Drive

Santa Monica

The following 6 distribution models reveal how Wilshire Blvd. can support TOD centers. We endorse models 3 and 6 as the most compelling and realizable models and are highlighted in orange.

0%

0%

60% 600K

PROPOSED 2050

+1M

c e nt ur y c it y 1 0%

c e nt ur y c it y 1 1%

62

POPULATION

C1

Center 1

CENTURY CITY 21%

po pu l ati o n

Whilshire 2050 Model 06 - Centralized

MODEL 06: THE TWO CENTERS PLAN CLUSTERS POPULATION GROWTH IN TWO SELECT AREAS, RESULTING IN HYPERDENSE ISLANDS AND WILL HOUSINE THE MAJORITY OF THE ADDITIONAL 1 MILLION WILSHIRE RESIDENTS. The most extreme of the centralized growth strategies, Model 6 adds the majority of the incoming population to Century City and Downtown while leaving the rest of the corridor largely untouched.

CONCENTRATED

2

gr a nd p a r k 1 3%

p e r s hi ng s q u ar e 13 %

CENTERS

me tr o c e nt e r 1 3%

p i c o 13 %

C2

2050 population

2015

Center 2

DOWNTOWN 52%

po pu l ati o n

PROPOSED 2050

+1M

c e nt ur y c it y 1 0%

c e nt ur y c it y 1 1%

64

POPULATION

C1

Center 1

CENTURY CITY 21%

po pu l ati o n

CENTURY CITY CENTURY CITY BECOMES A “SECOND DOWNTOWN” ENHANCING ITS EXISTING HIGH-RISE TEXTURE. With a current population density of 7,869 people per sq mi, Century City is about the County average density, but its existing commercial towers give it the look and feel of a second downtown.

CONCENTRATED

2

gr a nd p a r k 1 3%

p e r s hi ng s q u ar e 13 %

CENTERS

me tr o c e nt e r 1 3%

p i c o 13 %

C2

2050 population

2015

66

Whilshire 2050 Model 06 - Centralized Ribbon Buildings

Towers, Medium Density, Multi Family

Open Space

RESIDENTIAL

3% - 20 M sqft (gfa)

Residential

58% - 400 M sqft (gfa)

COMMERCIAL

CIVIC

Maintained Existing Buildings

INSTITUTION Open Space INDUSTRIAL

SUSTAINABILITY

Tramline Commercial

29% - 200 M sqft (gfa)

MIXED USE

Pedestrian Network

OPEN SPACE Institutional

2% - 15 M sqft (gfa)

Industrial

4% - 30 M sqft (gfa)

Mixed Use

4% - 30 M sqft (gfa)

Hardscape Layout

Metro Station

68

2015 POPULATION

20K DENSITY

12K

PER SQUARE MILE

CENTURY CITY

2050 POPULATION

350K +330K ADDED

DENSITY

210K

PER SQUARE MILE

POPULATION

c e nt ur y c it y 1 0%

+1M

c e nt ur y c it y 1 1%

70

PROPOSED 2050

C1

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES CURRENTLY ONE OF THE LOWEST DENSITY DOWNTOWNS OF ANY MAJOR GLOBAL METROPOLIS, LA’S DOWNTOWN WOULD GROW TENFOLD, ACCOMMODATING 668K PEOPLE IN 2050.

CONCENTRATED

2

C2

gr a nd p a r k 1 3%

p e r s hi ng s q u ar e 13 %

CENTERS

me tr o c e nt e r 1 3%

p i c o 13 %

Los Angeles’ downtown’s current density is 4,770 people per sq mi, which is about 40% lower than the metropolitan area density and 1/10 the density of nearby Koreatown. In this highly concentrated scenario, Downtown would be 10 times its current density and hold approximately 50% of the total Wilshire population. [Need clarity on excel document, 10x is only 47,700 people per sq mi but excel document says 209K people per sq mi: This downtown density would be higher than any seen in American cities, but comparable to the neighborhood of St. James Town in Toronto. Alt: This downtown density would be equivalent to residential neighborhoods in the Central Park East / Upper East Side portions of Manhattan.]

2050 population

2015

Center 2

DOWNTOWN 52%

po pu l ati o n

72

Whilshire 2050 Model 06 - Centralized Built Spaces

Open Space 6% - 20 M sqft

Residential

35% - 112 M sqft (gfa)

Green Spaces

3rd Figueroa

Hwy.101

Wilshire Flower

101 Olympic

Commercial

44% - 141 M sqft (gfa) 110

Hwy.10

Hwy.110

10

Infrastructure

3rd Figueroa Wilshire Flower

101

Mixed Use

Olympic

10% - 33 M sqft (gfa) 110

Institutional

5% - 14 M sqft (gfa)

Project Site Metro Station

10

74

2015 POPULATION

70K DENSITY

20K

PER SQUARE MILE

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

2050 POPULATION

740K +670K ADDED

DENSITY

220K

PER SQUARE MILE

76

CONCLUSION The Now Institute has identified key centers along Wilshire Blvd. that are ready to be transformed into TOD Centers. We believe that Wilshire Blvd. is both culturally rich and physically capable of serving as a favorable entry point to begin planning for a sustainable Los Angeles by 2050.

After a broad assessment, we generated six model scenarios and outlined a focused proposal for two out of the six models.

While each of the six models currently function as precursors in need of more formulated proposals, Model 03 and Model 06 begin to detail the possibility of addressing the county’s major challenges outlined in this document. Both proposals intensify Wilshire Blvd. with 1 million people and while the models are not presented as determined solutions, they appropriately function as flexible systems ready to facilitate the county’s sustainability goals.

Currently, the county must address its impending population growth and transportation infrastructure. Our studies suggest building the density of Wilshire Blvd. through TOD centers from Downtown to Santa Monica. We believe approaching the county’s challenges through physical terms will be key to achieving the county’s environmental and sustainability goals. As a result, the language of our preliminary proposal is physically robust, but more importantly carries a design intelligence that allows the county to address its most pressing challenges while remarkably leaving the rest of the city untouched.

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ABOUT THE NOW INSTITUTE Urban Research and Publications NOW Volumes 1-5 L.A. NOW first began with a set of questions geared toward addressing the distinct opportunities and challenges facing the city from housing, transportation infrastructure, to ecological networks. Each subsequent volume offered a more nuanced and specified understanding of the city.

In this way, the Wilshire Blvd. proposal, while seemingly autonomous, in fact draws directly from the research the Now Institute has been gathering for over ten years.

urban history, Volume 2 offered hybrid solutions to pressing public transportation issues. Examining the city’s transportation networks, Volume 2 forecasted effective public transportation connections for users to facilities. More importantly, resolving physical connections between public schools and subway lines was our primary interest.

Volume 1 // The first volume of the L.A. Now cast a wide net over the city with an attempt to capture the cultural lifeblood of the city. Volume 1 sought to understand the contours of the city through its neighborhoods, residents, topography and economy. While much of the study drew from existing cenus data, the result was far from a summary of statistics.

Rather, Volume 1 synthesized social science data and transformed mere numbers into a visual lexicon of the city.

Volume 5 // With Volume 5, the Institute imagines a profound role reversal, where design ideas would in fact forecast planning policies.

Here, robust design ideas will inform policy rather than policy informing design. Relying on Volume Two’s study of transportation networks, Wilshire Blvd. was chosen as site wothy of investigation for a number of reasons: its cultural cache and consistent economic investment, and most importantly, the Purple Line extension. For the first time, with Volume 5, the Now Institute offers a demonstration project that can serve as an essential platform that can be used to build a city-planning framework that has long been in search of resituating itself in the vision plans for the city.

Volume 3&4 // Radical densification as both an operational strategy and physical developmental scheme was first crystalized in Volumes Methodologically, each volume followed a 3&4. Volumes 3&4 examined the tenants of hybrid structure, presenting both research and design ideas that were directly informed smart growth policy. Directing our attention to housing as a fundamental component of by our findings. What follows is a brief the city, the projects summarized in Volumes explanation of each of the Institute’s 3&4 were not mere experiments in physical previous studies, and while each of the volumes are available online to read in full, development strategies, but the design schemes were in fact grappling to find an this brief sketch will offer insight as to how architectural formula that could capitalize the Institute ultimately directed its attention on existing regional planning frameworks. on Wilshire Blvd.

Volume 2 // The projects outlined in Volume 2 expanded the first volume and focused on the city’s infrastructure. Concentrating on the city’s existing assets: the L.A. River, LAX, and the downtown core as vestiges of the city’s

URBAN RESEARCH TO EMPOWER PHYSICAL PLANNING

80

URBAN RESEARCH TO LOCATE URBAN STRATEGY

THE NOW INSTITUTE THE NOW INSTITUTE is a yearlong urban planning and research center hosted at UCLA’s Architecture and Urban Design (A.UD) Department, with a focus on the investigation and application of urban strategies to complex problems in modern advanced metropolises and informal settlements.

UCLA Grand Challenge Sustainable LA initiative. Additionally, the Institute provides a platform for collaborating with diverse leaders and agencies, such as the RAND Corporation and the Mayor’s Institute on City Design.

The Now Institute has, over more than a decade, published four volumes of L.A. Now, a project which arose from a need Led by Pritzker Prize-winning architect to examine the imminent issues facing and UCLA Distinguished Professor Thom Los Angeles and address them through a Mayne and Director Eui-Sung Yi, the Now combined series of research and speculative Institute is a product of over 10 years of urban design proposals. The project took research initiatives in collaboration with a wide lens to Los Angeles, including an A.UD’s SUPRASTUDIO and establishes a analysis of existing demographics and new territory that integrates academic and professional pursuits that span cities across culture, population growth, energy and emissions, infrastructure and transportation. the United States and the world, including Los Angeles, New Orleans, Madrid, Beijing, Volume 1 functioned as an urban field guide, a neutral and nonpartisan data set Port-au-Prince, and Cap-Haïtien. The Now from which citizens and planners could draw Institute focuses on the investigation and application of urban strategies, working with interpretations and assessments. Volume 3 took a more active role producing urban cities affected by challenges of resilience, planning design solutions for downtown LA, culture, sustainability and mobility.The winning Architecture Magazine’s prestigious results of these initiatives have included P/A (Progressive Architecture) Award in publications such as L.A. Now Volumes 2005. The work produced here on behalf 1-4, Madrid Now, and the 720-page Haiti of the UCLA Grand Challenge builds on the Now visual almanac; realized projects L.A. Now series and is a natural extension such as the Float House for the Make It of the studies produced therein.

Right Foundation; and provided consulting for cities and government entities, with the Culture Now Project, the Cap-Haïtien studies and proposals, and, currently, the

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