West Edge

2024 Design Awards Merit Recipient

West Edge is a transit-oriented and mixed-use development situated at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Bundy Drive, in the creative heart of West Los Angeles. This project breathes new life into the former Martin Cadillac dealership site, transforming it into a vibrant, community-centric hybrid space.

Rather than conforming to the conventional mixed-use paradigms, West Edge pioneers a fresh concept known as Community Design. Workspaces are woven seamlessly into the fabric of the community, as opposed to being stand-alone entities. The integration of workplaces, retail, residences, and accessible open gardens serves as a prototype for future neighborhoods, where neighbors build community through these shared offerings and experiences.

West Edge engages directly with the cityscape. The Expo/Bundy station and adjacent bike path are just one block away, effortlessly linking the project with the city’s extensive transit network. This connection marks a pivotal shift for Los Angeles from a car-dominated metropolis to one that integrates diverse modes of transit. By harmonizing urban design with multimodal transportation, West Edge is a visionary testament to a more interconnected urban future.

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A strong mixed-use project that integrates with the surrounding community. The layered liveliness at the ground level spaces that will engage people and the city in a meaningful way. Lovely coupling of facade and form, that is innovative and allows for ample natural light and access to views.

//framework for design excellence measures

Measure 1: Design for Integration

The Office building is LEED & WELL registered, pursuing Platinum certification. It has met abmitious sustainability targets through a combniation of design strategies, including low embodied carbon design, efficient HVAC and lighting, water efficiency, and a strong connection to nature. Notably, the project reduced its carbon footprint by 23% by incorporating low-carbon concrete mixes.

Energy costs are decreased by 25% compared to similar projects, with a chilled water plant and ice storage system.

Green biophilia oasis in concrete island, including the use of native drought tolerant plants.100% of stormwater is captured for reuse, cutting irrigation water needs by 73%. Indoor water is also reduced by 45% through high-efficiency plumbing fixtures.

The office building is defined by a unified serrated glass facade with strategic reveals that appear as if the façade has been cut like a geode. The reveals create pockets of outdoor space and shading for tenants. The façade is dynamic and is intended to capture reflections of the surrounding building, landscape elements, and sky as the light and environment evolve throughout the day
Walkability in a single use car-centric neighborhood, encouraging multi-modal transit options.

Measure 2: Design for Equitable Communities

The developer conducted more than 100 community meetings to help inform the design, as well as solicited feedback from neighborhood councils, and other interest groups. Primary changes made from this feedback were pushing parking below grade to ring the plaza to grade, opening up view corridors into the plaza reducing the density of the office building.

Measure 3: Design for Ecosystems

The project uses native plants where possible – focusing on planting that can stand up to urban conditions such as reflected heat, drought and trampling. All planting used is drought tolerant, maximizing the use of low and very low water use plants in sunny and exposed locations.
The overall site plan maximizes access to open spaces at the ground level and terraces. Each of these spaces uses intensive vegetation to provide evaporative cooling . These spaces remain public and create a through block connection.

Measure 4: Design for Water

The project captures the 85th percentile storm and stores the stormwater within cisterns distributed throughout the building. Cisterns have a total capacity of 127,423 gallons of stormwater, which is reused for irrigation. Irrigation system prioritizes use of non-potable cistern water for landscape irrigation, the system eliminating the chances of overspray.
Water use for commercial restrooms was reduced by 45% according to LEED indoor water use credit with high-efficient plumbing fixtures.
The system incorporates 1,000 Ton-hour ice thermal storage plant, reducing cooling demand by 55% for up to 5 hrs/day.

Measure 5: Design for Economy

The Central Plaza was designed as a flexible community space. Beside everyday uses of rest, work, eat and gather, the property management team has held several community events, including “mural fest,” celebrating local artists; a dog adoption event with partner Wags n Walks; a Halloween-themed movie night; and a community trivia nights.

The number of overall subterranean parking spaces was reduced by 12.5% by various transit credits.

Measure 6: Design for Energy

The serrated Office envelope was designed for the mild coastal California climate, seeking to maximize natural lighting and views while mitigating afternoon cooling loads.

Measure 7: Design for Well-Being

West Edge’s landscape plaza acts as a lively connector between the office and residential buildings, offering an inviting urban oasis for occupants and residents. Each building features numerous rooftop terraces overlooking the plaza, providing space for connectivity to nature, physical activity and social interaction. Interior materials were carefully selected to prioritize indoor air quality, enhancing health and productivity of the occupants. The office building maximizes daylight harvesting, ensuring natural light and visual connections to the outdoors. Daylight analysis reveals a sDA (Spatial Daylight Autonomy) of 92% with shades for glare control, further optimizing the indoor environment.

Measure 8: Design for Resources

Previously, the site housed a car dealership, featuring an expansive surface parking area. Today, it has been transformed into a versatile, mixed-use environment, highlighted by an inviting urban plaza. The project prioritized minimizing the carbon footprint of the structure, utilizing low-carbon concrete mixes and rebar. The life cycle assessment of the office building indicates a 23% reduction in embodied carbon overall.

Measure 9: Design for Change

The ground commercial spaces are design to provide maximum flexibilty for inter-changable uses of office, retail, showrooms and F&B. Increased FTF height on second level commercial spaces allows for additional mezzanines built over time as spatial demands increase.

Measure 10: Design for Discovery

It is the developer’s standard procedure to conduct occupant satisfaction surveys to gain insights into occupants’ needs and inform property management about necessary operational adjustments for the project. As some office tenants are still adjusting, property management convenes monthly to address any issues. A satisfaction survey is planned for later this year, and all feedback will be carefully reviewed and utilized to enhance the overall experience for occupants and guests. Updates to wayfinding has been implemented since occupancy based on survey findings.