Why is it that cities from New York to Shanghai, Dubai to London and Kuala Lumpur to Atlanta can throw up iconic skyscrapers like so many murals, while L.A.'s boxy tops look more like the Appalachians after strip-mining?
The answer? Blame well-meaning text inserted in 1974 into the Los Angeles Municipal Code.
— kcet.org
5 Comments
jeremy, great article, references and issues raised. and, nice to hear from you too.
i wonder if we at archinect can organize or sponsor a "great los angeles sky scraper rooftop makeover" competition?
btw, i for one, find the cover photo of flat toppers also very attractive, it kind of neutralizes the icon making process as discussed by koolhaas and his partner reiner de graaf.;.)
but, regardless of my "like," i think there is need to have other alternatives for evacuation and city silhouette as los angeles will keep going increasingly vertical. i appreciate woo's and yours efforts.
I wonder how many tower designs have made it to LA fire review over the years only to be denied with a "no helipad" comment.
^ I'd be surprised if it was all that many. This is a pretty well known (infamous, and debated) code issue.
I would wonder orhan if the "kind of dazzling architectural tops that you see in other cities." is really the missing ingredient in LA's urban fabric. I suppose it guarantees a more interesting verticality as LA densifies and i agree with ideas like the helipad not having to be at zenith but again is what is needed more dazzle? i like the skyscraper makeover proposal but would suggest that using the roofs more productively (whether green, water catchment, solar etc might be a better direction) should be focus not more ornamental....
like i said nam, i like the flat top image. maybe it should be "preserved".;.). i agree with you on productive roofs. and what if some day one those helipads save few dozen lives.. it is really a strange effort to argue for and against the helipad regulations while other issues directly effecting lives on the ground are not getting due attention. i wonder if there is anything else embedded in the issue, ie; economics benefiting the developers' profit margin and making development more attractive? i wonder if building pads are really expensive comparing leased floor space or a penthouse unit?
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