L.A. River

Photos

(Click each for a larger version)

L.A. River photo #1
L.A. River photo #2
L.A. River photo #3

Special Recognition

  • Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
  • City of Los Angeles, Dept. of Public Works
  • Division Miscellaneous
  • Location Los Angeles, CA

Overview

The broad, barren concrete channel of the Los Angeles River is familiar to many people outside California, thanks to its cameo roles in numerous movies and TV shows, but in real life the river is in many places a "fenced-off Mars-scape," as the project team described it. The team went on to write that "virtually no project in the world matches the potential of an ecology-minded and people-centric revitalization of the Los Angeles River." As their entry in a re-visioning project for the river, they mapped a modern greenway where flood control and water retention co-exist with natural plantings, jogging paths, museums, art installations and other amenities. Jurors were impressed: "They're taking something old and not easily removed, all that concrete, and they're revitalizing it, making it fresh."