This $3.6 million streetscape renovation for the City of Paramount re-envisioned the character of their downtown district to create places for people, incorporate sustainable landscaping and engineering practices, modernize the local transit system, enhance lighting and wayfinding, and improve the safety of pedestrians. A half-mile stretch of Paramount Boulevard between Jackson Street and Alondra Boulevard was invigorated by the improvements.
The project required that the design team and the City perform a full analysis of the existing conditions, to understand the uses, engineering, and mobility requirements of cars, buses and pedestrians in the public right of way. The team also developed a strategy of partnering with neighboring properties to encourage improvements that would support an identity for downtown Paramount and increase customer trips to the commercial tenants.
Informed by their analysis, the landscape architect and civil engineer worked together to redesign street drainage to flow into curbside bioswales, thereby reducing the stormwater impacts on the existing infrastructure system and augmenting the curbside planters with water from winter rains. The landscape architects also collaborated closely with city traffic engineers to reduce the width of traffic lanes in order to widen sidewalks, create public seating areas and provide curb adjacent landscaping with pedestrian lighting.
As part of the program, the district was evaluated for opportunities and constraints on both public and private property, and a "kit of parts" was devised and employed in order to bring a positive impact to Paramount Boulevard. In this way, the project served as a pilot program for public improvements that could be repeated throughout the City. These "parts" consisted of: mid-block pedestrian crossings, public parklets, drought-tolerant landscaping, custom bus stop trellises, traffic calming medians, public dining paseos, parkway planting and new sidewalks, bulb-outs at intersections, protected on-street parking, graphic crosswalks, pedestrian lighting, bicycle racks and street furniture.

 
This project has served to not only enhance downtown Paramount but has also led to recent improvements of other streets and the rehabilitation of all transit shelters and bus stops throughout the City. The project was informed by a careful analysis of street drainage that resulted in custom curbside bioswales and drain inlets, reduced stormwater impacts on the existing infrastructure system and allowed for new curbside planters and street trees to be augmented by winter rains. As part of the landscape improvements 50 new canopy trees were planted as well as 12 accent trees and 16 palm trees.
Client: City of Paramount
Landscape Architect: Studio One Eleven
Traffic & Civil Engineer: Willdan Engineering
Contractor: CS Legacy

The upcoming Streetscapes Issue of Landscape Architect and Specifier News saw many firms submit their projects for feature consideration. This project was not chosen for a Feature in the issue, but we at LandscapeArchitect.com thought the project deserved to be showcased online . . .

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