Project Details
- Project Name
- Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square
- Architect
- James Corner Field Operations
- Client/Owner
- City of Santa Monica
- Project Types
- Cultural
- Size
- 322,344 sq. feet
- Year Completed
- 2013
- Shared by
- Cyprien Roy
- Project Status
- Built
Project Description
2015 Urban Open Space Award Competition Shortlist Project
Text from the Urban Land Institute:
Tongva Park & Ken Genser Square embody a new type of urban landscape that is active, innovative, resource-conscious, and natural. Shaped by extensive public participation, the design creates a contemporary and transformative series of gardens and active spaces that symbolically redefine and interconnect the center of Santa Monica.
Inspired by the Southern California arroyo landscape of washes and ravines that once defined the site, a series of braided pathways appear to organically emerge from the footsteps of City Hall, extend west, and weave the park into the fabric of the City. Dramatic rising and falling topography reinforces the fluid pathway system and organize the site into four thematic hilltop areas, each calibrated to a different primary use and experience.
As a whole, the project offers a new model of sustainability for similarly scaled projects– one that carefully balances environmental and cultural considerations. From abandoned parking lots to the largest-scale Mediterranean meadow garden of its complexity in a public space, Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square have restored valuable ecosystem services and social vibrancy to a once derelict and degraded urban site.
Learn more about the rest of the shortlisted projects here.