Los Angeles has a somewhat deserved reputation for being a sprawling and unplanned mess, but the core of the city that we know today was defined by just a few ambitious 20th Century urban planning projects. Beginning with the dedication of City Hall in 1928, which the L.A. Times called “a sheer tower of white, symbolizing a new era of progress and accomplishment for the Pacific Southwest,” the City and other regional agencies brought about the destruction and redevelopment of the urban core. On this walk, we explore these grand projects and also, with the help of historic photographs, re-place the diverse neighborhoods that were lost.
Details:
This approximately 3.5-mile walk began at Union Station and ended at Chinatown Station. It included a long break at City Hall where we had a discussion with Los Angeles’ Chief Design Officer, Christopher Hawthorne.
We led this walk for the incoming group of Urban Futures Lab fellows at the request of Public Matters, a creative studio for civic engagement. While this was not a public event, SpAN hopes to revisit it in a public form in the future.
