By Delle Willett

Landscape Architects from LPA, Inc. recently won a Merit Award in the “Commercial” category from the American Society of Landscape Architects, San Diego Chapter (ASLA), for the transformation of 701 B Street into an urban plaza.

The ASLA Design Awards are held every other year, recognizing professional excellence for outstanding works of landscape architecture and environmental planning that promote an enhanced quality of life in San Diego County and beyond.

In the heart of downtown San Diego, 701 B Street acts as an extension of the adjacent café and lobby, and an outdoor amenity space for building tenants and pedestrians.

Said Kari Kikuta, Director of Landscape Architecture at LPA, “The 701 B Street plaza shows how small urban spaces can have a big impact. It’s a new place to get away in downtown and provides a variety of flexible seating options for passerby and building tenants alike.”

The plaza is a very small space that makes a large impact on its surroundings. It includes a simple but elegant 20-foot tall by 50-foot long water wall and a striking undulating overhead canopy, which creates a pedestrian-scaled lounge, bringing down the scale of the urban context and creating a welcome outdoor urban oasis.

“In just 7000 square feet, the plaza creates a truly memorable experience and is proof that small-scale landscape architecture can have a big impact,” commented the judges of the award program.

LPA also won a Merit Award in the “Institution” category for Richard R. Oliphant Elementary School in Indio.

Founded in 1965, LPA specializes in creating innovative environments that work better, do more with less and improve people’s lives. An integrated design firm with six locations in California and Texas, LPA’s team includes more than 400 in-house architects, master planners, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects and research analysts, working across a wide array of sectors. For more information, visit www.lpadesignstudios.com.

In San Diego, the LPA office is at 1600 National Avenue, San Diego.

— Delle Willett has been a marketing and public relations professional for over 30 years, with an emphasis on conservation of the environment. She can be reached at [email protected].