Archinect - News

LA issues RFQ for $352 million Exposition Park recharge

2024-08-19T11:52:00-04:00

The City of Los Angeles will issue a major $352 million upgrade to Exposition Park in its build-up to the 2028 Olympic Games in an effort to address spatial inequalities in neighborhoods that had been “historically left behind,” Governor Gavin Newsom’s office said at the August 1st announcement.

In order to help mitigate the effects of an urban heat island in one of California’s most park-deficient and densely populated areas, the project will install a new six-acre green space and underground parking structure. Residents of the surrounding neighborhoods in South LA will benefit from the incorporation of other state-of-the-art amenities like EV charging stations and a new community space after asphalt surface parking areas are removed from its southeast corner. The announcement noted this area is currently underserved with only about 1 acre of green space available per every 1,000 persons, which is about ten times less than the national average.

Image: Torti-Gallas + Partners

Califor...

Paris' hostile Olympics architecture worries Los Angeles advocates ahead of 2028

2024-08-12T20:02:00-04:00

"I haven’t seen anything quite like this," says Jules Boykoff, a professor and former professional soccer player who studies the impact of the Olympics on marginalized communities. "Typically, hostile architecture is more subtle."

The worry that Los Angeles may attempt a full-scale homeless 'cleansing' ahead of the 2028 Olympics has always been present as the statistical realities make too apparent: At least 75,000 people currently live without housing in L.A. County. Now, the task for their advocates is to buck trends that already started in London in 2012.

The Reddit group r/HostileArchitecture has been roiling by images of a ‘LEGO-like’ concrete obstacle in the Saint-Denis Canal that could, regrettably, become a staple. California has been pushing encampment sweeps more aggressively in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling in late June.

Checking in on LA's ‘28 by 28’ transit plan with an eye on the next Summer Olympics

2024-08-09T18:00:00-04:00

New reporting on the transportation infrastructure strategy for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles from the local NBC affiliate has shown glaring gaps that may complicate the promises made previously by then-Mayor Eric Garcetti and other officials.

The report found that ten L.A. Metro projects will not be completed until after 2028. Metro, which received $900 million in funding for the expansion this spring, is still facing a $400 million deficit. Altogether, the projects (which also include freeway improvements around L.A. County) are worth a total of $42.9 billion. The most important of these is the Purple Line extension to the Westside, which has faced numerous cost overruns and construction challenges since work first began in 2014.

Pharrell calls for reintroducing arts and architecture competitions at the Olympics

2024-08-01T17:54:00-04:00

[Pharrell] Williams is aiming to reinstate arts competitions back on the world’s biggest sports stage, starting with raising awareness through his star-studded Louis Vuitton event Thursday in Paris. He passionately shared his goal to see the tradition revived by the Olympics in 2028 the night before the Games’ opening ceremony.

As we detailed three years ago during the Tokyo games, the modern Olympics were at one time also meant to showcase feats of artistic and architectural talent (although most were tinged by racist theories of the time). Pharrell’s view, which he wouldn’t elaborate, is that having them included would “raise awareness.”

Francesca Aton of ARTnews joined the musician and Louis Vuitton creative director (and avid skateboarder) in espousing: “[It’s] clear that reviving them would not only take a big effort but would also require the support of those active among the categories in each respective field. As recent studies on arts workers reveal gaps in professional continuation and low wages, support for those in the field could be a welcome change and an opportunity for impactful discovery.”

LA moves up Convention Center expansion plan to clear 2028 Olympics hurdle

2024-07-08T11:14:00-04:00

The Los Angeles City Council moved to finalize plans for the long-awaited expansion of the Los Angeles County Convention Center in downtown. Populous will be leading the design work for the project, which includes a landscaped component from OLIN as was previously reported in March of 2022.

The pre-design work could cost up to $100 million before the estimated $1.4 billion project kicks off in 2025. According to the city’s press release: “190,000 square feet of space to create one contiguous hall, and will add 55,000 square feet of new meeting room space and 95,000 square feet of multipurpose space. The plan also includes a redesign of Gilbert Lindsay Plaza, which will add public open space and become an exciting outdoor venue for event programming.”

Plans for a new 37-story Marriott Hotel tower from Gensler at the site are being delayed for right now, says Urbanize LA. The fate of the nearby unfinished Oceanwide Plaza development also remains unclear.

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Dodger Stadium gondola plan gains LA Metro Board approval

2024-02-24T08:00:00-05:00

The LA Metro Board of Directors has given their final go-ahead for a controversial gondola project in Los Angeles that would offer an alternative transportation route from downtown Union Station to Dodger Stadium to baseball fans by the start of the 2028 Summer Olympics. The board voted unanimously in favor of the final version of the plan’s Environmental Impact Report on Thursday.

As was pointed out by LAist, the proposal still needs approvals from Los Angeles City Council, Caltrans, and California State Parks to begin construction. The Metro’s decision came with a steep set of 31 conditions, which include a fund for affordable housing plus marketing opportunities and other concessions directed to small business owners in Elysian Park and Chinatown.

The proposal is marketed as being able to transport a total of 5,000 people per hour on a 7-minute ride with three stations along a 1.2-mile path. The Dodgers say this will reduce traffic by 3,000 cars for each of their 81 home games pe...

Feds dole out $1 billion to get the Inglewood Transit Connector moving in LA's South Bay

2024-01-08T19:15:00-05:00

The planned Inglewood Transit Connector (ITC) in the Los Angeles area is moving forward thanks to a recent $1.09 billion investment by the federal government that will help deliver the 1.6-mile automated people mover to the rapidly changing South Bay district.

Once in place, the ITC will connect the neighborhood’s most important recent economic cogs, including SoFi Stadium and the soon-to-open Intuit Dome, with the Metro line while serving a maximum of 11,000 riders per hour. The design contractor for the project's implementation will be selected later in the year.

"This action delivers on the promise of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support communities whose transit infrastructure has been neglected for too long and who have been impacted negatively by the construction of major freeways like the I-405 in Inglewood," Senator Alex Padilla said at the announcement.

Image courtesy City of Inglewood

"For the federal government to make a $1 billion investment in a city of 9 square...

AIA Los Angeles pens open letter to 2028 Olympics & Paralympics organizers

2023-09-11T18:43:00-04:00

The American Institute of Architects Los Angeles (AIA|LA) has released an open letter sent to organizers of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games on behalf of its members, encouraging their strategizing with the chapter toward outcomes they say will be a “big win” for multiple stakeholders in the community.

The text states the need for LA28 to consider the importance of placemaking and the games’ eventual aftermath, calling on organizers as a whole to work together on a progressive design agenda that benefits all while enshrining the region’s diversity and enhancing the events’ sustainable footprint.

Focusing on four key areas, the chapter’s letter calls for:

Engage with the AIA and the architecture & design community.
Consider the expansion of LA28’s legacy mission.
Expand partnerships with community stakeholders and leverage their resources to advance projects already in the Los Angeles pipeline.
Increase participation opportunities in the Games planning process and be a leader in in...

All aboard for the next phase of Union Station reconstruction in LA

2022-06-02T09:00:00-04:00

The L.A. Metro system’s planned revitalization of Los Angeles Union Station is another step closer to reality following a vote last week that cleared the way for the $2.3 billion megaproject’s further advancement downtown.

Local outlets are reporting that the recent Board of Directors meeting resulted in an approval of a funding agreement between the Metro and California High-Speed Rail Authority which is expected to cover the first phase of development called Link Union Station. The initial project is itself the expanded version of an earlier scheme that would clear a bottleneck at one end of the tracks in addition to providing a new viaduct and railway span over the adjoining 101 Freeway.

Previously on Archinect: L.A.'s Union Station overhaul receives $400 million from California High Speed Rail

A total of $423.3 million will be allocated in the first phase, with another $297.8 million provided for preliminary work. Including the most recent influx of monies from the Rail Authority,...

LAX Automated People Mover development consortium hits major milestone

2021-07-02T16:33:00-04:00

An international consortium of engineering, construction, and infrastructure development firms has begun work on Los Angeles International Airport’s (LAX) Automated People Mover (APM) project.

The team, named LAX Integrated Express Solutions (LINXS), is led by experienced public-private partnership developers and equity investors, including Fluor Enterprises, Balfour Beatty Investments, Hochtief PPP Solutions GmbH, ACS Infrastructure Development, and Bombardier Transportation. LINXS has also enlisted the services of construction engineering company Flatiron West, along with fellow ACS Group subsidiary company Dragados and American design firm HDR.

The APM project is the centerpiece of the Los Angeles World Airport’s (LAWA), the airport authority that owns and operates LAX, Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP), a $5.5 billion project that aims to relieve congestion and enhance traveler experience at LAX. LAMP is part of a $14 billion facilities upgrade at LAX to help facili...

L.A's Union Station is getting upgraded in preparation for 2028 Olympics

2019-05-21T18:49:00-04:00

One effort currently underway is Link Union Station, a $2.2-billion project that hopes to make the facility a hub connecting Metro Rail’s intercity subway and light rail lines to allow for a better long-term travel experience — and hopefully stem falling ridership. The project is slated for completion before the Olympics come to Los Angeles in 2028.

As Los Angeles gears up for a slew of global tourism events, including upcoming Super Bowl, World Cup, and Olympic happenings, the city's Union Station is receiving a flood of investment.

Major upgrades include the restoration of historical elements of the complex, the reconfiguration of the main train concourse to allow regional commuter trains to operate run-through service between L.A. and Orange County, pedestrian upgrades along with areas leading to the station, and the completion of several new transit lines running through the site.

When all is said and done, transportation officials hope to double rail usage in the region to 200,000 trips per day by 2040, with many of those passengers passing through Union Station's soaring Art Deco halls.

Will the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics truly be low-impact?

2018-07-12T16:04:00-04:00

The only profitable games in modern Olympic history, LA 1984 was a case study in public–private partnerships, corporate sponsorship, and municipal storytelling [...] It’s proof, say LA 2028 organizers, that the city can do it again: re-use the city’s wealth of existing and under-construction stadiums and athletic facilities, house athletes and the media at local universities, and host an Olympics that won’t require new publicly-funded infrastructure...

The Olympics have been promoted to cities as a vehicle for ushering in investment, attention, and urban growth. The reality, however, is often contradicting with failed developments and infrastructure left in the aftermath. As Los Angeles prepares to host the 2028 games, large questions remain on how this will impact the city with an affordable housing and a homelessness crisis.

It's official - LA will host the Olympics in 2028, Paris in 2024

2017-09-13T18:26:00-04:00

Los Angeles’ rollercoaster campaign to host the Olympics — an effort marked by early defeat and last-second negotiations — reached its conclusion Wednesday when the city was formally awarded the 2028 Summer Games. International Olympic Committee members, by a unanimous show of hands, voted their approval at a session in Lima, Peru, ending an unusual bid competition that resulted in two winners as Paris was simultaneously given the 2024 Games.

Paris and Los Angeles were officially awarded the 2024 and 2028 summer games, respectively. Both cities have previously hosted the summer olympics twice, Paris in 1900 and in 1924, and Los Angeles in 1932 and in 1984. The two cities already have some of the necessary infrastructures to host the games but the Olympics will most likely transform their built environment.

Los Angeles to host 2028 Summer Olympics; hopes to cut costs by using existing venues

2017-08-01T13:40:00-04:00

After weeks of negotiations with the International Olympic Committee, Los Angeles officials have reached a deal to host the 2028 Summer Games under terms they hope will generate hundreds of millions in savings and additional revenues. The agreement will bring the Olympics back to Southern California for a third time, after Los Angeles hosted in 1984 and 1932. It also opens the door for the 2024 Games to be held in Paris.

Spiraling costs and notorious budget overruns have discouraged other cities from pushing towards being a host to the 2024/28 Summer Olympics, but Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti thinks otherwise and hopes to avoid unpredictable spending by reusing existing venues and infrastructure.

As the Los Angeles Times reports, "Olympic experts have said that L.A. could be different because its plan relies on existing venues such as Staples Center, Pauley Pavilion and the Coliseum. It avoids spending billions to construct new stadiums and arenas. Further savings would arise from housing athletes and the media at UCLA and USC rather than building expensive villages."

LA officials aren't only hoping to cover the cost of the games but actually generate a surplus — emulating the success of the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.