Vista Hermosa Park Ranger Station

New Park: This ranger station and outdoor gathering area is designed for Vista Hermosa Park, a new landscape just west of Downtown Los Angeles that sits on a portion of the notoriously toxic site where the Belmont High School was originally started, halted, and then finished under a new name. Designed by the landscape firm Mia Lehrer and Associates, the park provides a much-needed space in a dense, underprivileged area of the Los Angeles.

Sustainability in theory and practice: Like the park as a whole, the ranger station and covered plaza have been designed to educate the park’s users about sustainability and to illustrate the results of its practical application. A methane mitigation system creates a route for the toxic gas to escape from the soil, while pervious pavement allows rainwater to soak immediately back into the earth.

Garden Roof: Nestled into a cut out in the hill, the ranger station utilizes an efficient layout and is constructed of sustainable materials. These include walls of concrete block clad with simulated wood, floors of cork, and a roof covered with indigenous plants that create oxygen and reduce heat gain.

Photovoltaic Trellis: Surrounding the ranger station and roughly continuous with the surrounding landscape is a gently warped steel trellis covered with translucent photovoltaic cells. These create a vibrant covered plaza for individual lounging or large events, as well as energy for the entire park. To educate the parks users about the process of turning sunlight into energy, a section of the trellis folds down and creates a display that monitors the amount of power that is generated by the system.