LA has few corners as prominent as First and Broadway. Directly adjacent to the art deco City Hall and across from the LA Times building, the nearly-2 acre lot stands at the center of an increasingly well-trafficked pedestrian area. Now, some of the biggest names in town are competing to transform the lot into a bold new park.

After a wider call for proposals, the LA Bureau of Engineering, in conjunction with the Mayor's Office, announced a shortlist of finalists late last year: AECOM, Brooks + Scarpa Architects, Eric Owen Moss Architects, and Mia Lehrer + Associates in collaboration with OMA. Each practice was given six weeks to produce a design, which are currently of public view.

Soon, the City will announce the winners of the competition, following input from the public, and then will proceed to finalize the designs.

Since the new park abuts the larger Grand Park (designed by Rios Clementi Hale Studios), it needs to both stand out as a unique design and seamlessly mesh with the existing urban landscape. The proposals tend towards the iconic, and incorporate ambitious programming ideas.

Here's a look at the designs:

AECOM

"In the face of daunting challenges—drought, climate change, homelessness, intolerance—leisure may be interpreted as a luxury, but it is absolutely critical to our vibrant urban future. Sam Lubell, co-curator of the A+D Museum’s Shelter exhibition, says of the future Los Angeles, 'It’s all about shared space. You don’t get your own outdoor space anymore.' New luxury apartments offer private amenities for their residents, but FAB Park can be that outdoor space where all our families and friends can enjoy iconic Southern California leisure experiences. It is in this realm that Los Angeles—with our climate, our creativity and our conviviality (literally, living together)—can and should lead the nation again."

Brooks + Scarpa Architects

"At its most basic, simplest form, the park is a reflection of its geology. Marine claystone covers its northeast corner, leading to an alluvial plain at its southern-most corner. Sited at the high, the event space opens to a field of flowing striations made of reclaimed concrete rubble. The organic gesture to the park’s significant context moves through the site, guiding the flow of water through a series of interwoven terraces and cisterns to an expansive dry well within what was the alluvial plain."

Eric Owen Moss Architects

"The architecture selection committee for the First and Broadway Civic Center Park has given us two fundamental park design requirements: create an iconic park; design a park that meets the assigned budget. We are convinced we have delivered both to the City and to the citizens of Los Angeles.

Whatever the particulars, well known parks worldwide from Park Guell in Barcelona to the Bois de Boulogne in Paris to Central Park in New York, all give us special moments of joy and relaxation. From Frisbees, picnics, and concerts to hot dogs, razor scooters, and merry-go-rounds the park is a respite from the stressful redundancy of contemporary urban life.

We’ve designed a versatile park, with multiple possibilities for the most imaginative uses. We’ve made a didactic park, where learning and enjoyment are synonyms."

Mia Lehrer Associates + OMA*

*OMA designed the multi-level restaurant and canopies included in the proposal

"First and Broadway Civic Center Park embodies the true essence of civic center. The heart of an urban setting. The beginning from which growth occurs and from which history unfolds. The place where people instinctively go… As it offers all aspects that are afforded from a great Civic Park – calm, interest, intrigue, and exuberance. A collector of the virtues of creativity offered from the diversity of Los Angeles. A reflection of the individuals and community of the surrounding neighborhoods. A setting to reflect on the beauty of Southern California regional climate. A place to inhabit for the tranquility, enjoyment, and spectacle of the greatness of the City."

Take a look at more images from these proposals in the image gallery, or download all the media from the City of Los Angeles, here.