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The San Pedro Promenade, Port of Los Angeles06-01-10 | News

The San Pedro Promenade,
Port of Los Angeles

by Todd Bronk, Landscape Architect, Associate, LEED AP, CSBA, Design + Planning, AECOM
& Editor, Stephen Kelly

Above & Below: The fountain at Gateway Plaza is a grand water show syncopated to music and lights, designed by WET Design in collaboration with EDAW/AECOM to become a major choreographed attraction and gateway to the waterfront promenade.
Above Photo: Brian Boecking
Below Photo: Todd Kohli

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For some residents of San Pedro, Calif., living on the rim of the Pacific Ocean has not been a lifetime at the beach. Many people in the lower income community have rarely had the opportunity to access the water?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Custom ?EUR??,,????'?????< AECOM 2008 / Top Photo: Dixie Carrillo
Bottom Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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The completion of the Gateway Plaza and fountain marks a milestone in the Los Angeles waterfront regeneration project for AECOM (formerly EDAW) and the Port of Los Angeles. The fountain site connects the initial phases of work at the Cruise Ship Promenade and the Harbor Boulevard Parkway. The Promenade provides up-close views of working cranes, tugs, and cruise ships and has created much-needed space for civic celebrations on and around the water. The Tall Ships Festival, the Christmas Lighting, the Children?EUR??,,????'?????<

The Harbor Boulevard Parkway connects the Gateway Plaza and fountain to downtown San Pedro though a pedestrian walkway, class-one bike trail and several plazas. Design details, such as the ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Descending from the 2.2 mile-Vincent Thomas suspension bridge (left) you arrive at the Port of Los Angeles?EUR??,,????'?????< Rendering: Design + Planning, AECOM

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Project Design

The Gateway Plaza and fountain are prominent visual markers from the adjacent boulevard and offer a memorable up-close experience that welcomes locals and arriving cruise ship passengers with a grand water show syncopated to music and lights. Set against a sweeping backdrop of Canary Island palms, the fountain rises from a black-granite infinity pool, bisected by a granite walking path that literally invites the public into the water, providing a cool, misty respite on hot Southern California days. The pedestrian walk features an infinity edge, moving visitors into the main basin and water displays, while cantilevered ironwood seating along the exterior walls provides for additional public interaction and observation. The fountain?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The attractive granite seat walls set in the plaza and along the promenade provide large seating areas and reflect the historical color of the red car line.
Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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Fountain Design

Fanare, the name given to the fountain, is programmed to music. The designers worked closely with community members to develop a meaningful musical selection for San Pedro, a town rich in cultural diversity and history, international connectivity and frequent movie-location site. (Editor?EUR??,,????'?????<

One piece of music for the fountain is an obscure Croatian tune tracked down and copied from an old LP to the delight and surprise of San Pedro?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Walking along the promenade from the Maritime Museum in the direction of the large fountain, strolling visitors are pleasantly surprised to come upon a splash pad (Wet Design) of colorful geometric designs. A mandatory stop if kids are in tow. The splash pad area and the portion of Harbor Blvd. behind it may one day be part of the San Pedro waterfront edge if planned future phases of the project are realized.
Photos: Adam Scott Kelly

The fountain operates at three levels during the day. During non-show times, the basin is an infinity pool, stretching across the Cruise Terminal access road and providing a civic entrance to the port and the Cruise Terminal. During daytime shows, the 58 massive jets rise in sequence from the basin to music and dance, keeping visitors cool and providing an active place for children to congregate and play along the water?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The engraved words ?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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Site Design

Gateway Plaza is a gathering space where visitors enjoy the fountain, board the Red Car (historic light rail), view the Cruise Ships, and learn about San Pedro?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The Gateway Plaza Fanfare Fountain, set against a sweeping backdrop of Canary Island palms, rises from a black-granite infinity pool that forms symmetrical falls along its edges. The fountain is bisected by a granite walking path.
AECOM 2008 / Photo: Dixie Carrillo

Gateway Plaza is dotted by Mexican fan palms, which naturally occur in informal clusters around town, giving vertical presence to important civic gathering areas. Granite seat walls set in the plaza provide a large seating area and reflect the historical color of the red car line, while giving place to the scale and shape of the working container terminals visible from the site. Custom ?EUR??,,????'?????<

These winged lights were a direct outcome of the extensive community outreach by the design team and remain a favorite with locals.

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Cantilevered ironwood seating along the fountain?EUR??,,????'?????< AECOM 2008 / Photo: Dixie Carrillo

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Planting Design

The plaza and fountain are contained within an arc of Canary Island palms. These trees create an instant sense of space and human scale within the context of the surrounding industrial land in transition. Use of palms is limited to the most significant gathering areas within the larger project.

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The pool?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

The ground plane planting surrounding Gateway Plaza and the fountain are equal extensions of the Cruise Ship Promenade and Harbor Boulevard plantings. Mimicking the historical salt marshes that once existing along the water?EUR??,,????'?????<

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This old Red Line train, which runs parallel to the promenade, gives passengers a bit of nostalgia, a little San Pedro history and views of the cruise ships. The old Red Line was viable transportation for Angelinos from 1898 to 1961. Ridership peaked in 1944 when U.S. troops stationed here awaiting their shipping orders to the Pacific theater of operations. A modern Red Line has been reestablished in L.A., along with the six other lines. It?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

Sustainability & Civic Enhancement

The LA Waterfront Regeneration project applies environmental and economic sustainability principles. The design of the built work uses practices such as drought-tolerant plantings, recycled materials, low impact drainage, permeable paving and a significant greening of the site, thus reducing the heat island effect (the site was previously covered in asphalt).

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The low-water plantings along the promenade mimic the salt marshes that once existing along the water?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

Importantly, the project aimed to address social and economic sustainability. The seven-miles of waterfront under development are bookended by two economically disparate communities: one of affluence, the other of relative poverty. Because urban regeneration is among the primary goals of this project and development is intended to attract businesses and new residents to San Pedro, AECOM?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The fairly narrow strip that separates the cruise ship facilities from the tracks and roadway is packed with landscaping. The ?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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About the Firm

EDAW has evolved! The name is now AECOM. The AECOM Design + Planning professionals work in concert with a wide range of experts to enhance and sustain the world's built, natural and social environments.

Vendors
Concrete Pavers: Ackerstone Paving Co.
Decomposed granite: Southwest Boulder & Stone
Fountain equipment, specialized: WET Design
Fountain and site granite: Cold Springs Granite

Lighting
Column lights: Se?EUR??,,????'?????< Custom ?EUR??,,????'?????< In-grade trail markers: Tokistar Lighting
Smart Pole series: Holophane
Uplighting: Hydrel

Site Furniture: Hess America and Landscapeforms (Gretchen Series)

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Way finding is made easy with the colors of the ocean and markers uplit for nighttime directional needs.
Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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The maritime touches are everywhere on site. The pole bases along the promenade incorporate a ?EUR??,,????'?????< Photo: Adam Scott Kelly

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