Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Los Angeles: The Grove
What stunning views big parking garages can get you. The Grove in Los Angeles has a path from the public parking garage that is on axis with the shops and plaza, making it a grand entrance and vantage point. The width of the path is about 35', which is generous enough for outdoor seating and other activities to occur. The buildings at the ground level hide the big parking structure. (It's ironic, but it seems that you have to have gigantor parking facilities if you want to motivate people to walk in LA.)
Cafe Borrone and Keplers, Menlo Park, CA
This mixed use building in Menlo Park was designed to be the town square. It is located a busy section of El Camino Real between Menlo Avenue and Santa Cruz Avenue. There are three active uses at the ground floor, BBC Pub, Cafe Borrone, and Kepler's Bookstore. People come to relax in a generous plaza that feels civic and spacious. It is approximately 75' from El Camino Real (where El Camino is 2 lanes each way, instead of the standard 3 lanes each way). While this may be one of the slowest sections of El Camino, it still moves along. The space is roughly 100' wide, which is a comfortable stage from which to watch people and the cars driving by. The two stories on top are commercial office space, and below there is underground parking. Behind the building is the Menlo Park Caltrain Station. It is one of the most urban examples of progressive development in the Bay Area.
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