ARTIC, the new 16-acre Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center in Southern California, forms a seamless gateway from Anaheim to all of Orange County, spurring economic growth and community redevelopment throughout the region. The landscape design establishes a unique and identifiable image for the ARTIC Mixed-Use District by complementing the site’s iconic architecture with a strong streetscape identity. A large central plaza, designed to evoke the feel of a European square, integrates passenger drop-off areas, a central pedestrian zone, and a forecourt for the terminal building. Artwork is incorporated into the overall plaza design adding aesthetic diversity and visual interest to the site. Rows of olive trees and succulent plantings on either side of the building and plaza further unify architecture and site. The olive trees provide shaded seating areas for riders waiting for their buses while the succulent garden adds vibrant color and texture to the space surrounding the building. Date palms and canopy trees provide a dramatic, shaded outdoor environment for civic events and informal socializing, and visitors are afforded a relaxing riverfront walk along the Santa Ana River. In the future, a continuation of the Date Palms along a pedestrian promenade in the center of the northern parking lot will establish a strong visual and pedestrian connection to the Honda Center, providing dappled shade with a colorful garden beneath as a setting for building and parking access.
Grand Candela Memorial
The “Grand Candela” commemorates the victims and survivors of the August 2019 mass shooting tragedy at Walmart’s Cielo Vista store. Inspired by the motif of an everlasting candle and set in a plaza within the store’s parking lot, the memorial offers a dedicated place of healing and remembrance. Columns of perforated metal, one for each life lost, are joined to...
Dubai Opera District
The elegant and the everyday coexist harmoniously in Dubai’s new Opera District, is a stylish cultural destination set to promote culture and the arts, stimulate global exchange, encourage local talent, and serve as a vibrant events venue. Dramatic view corridors lead to both to the opera house and to the adjacent spectacle of the world’s tallest building—the ...
Houston Green Loop
With the coming expansion and realignment of the highways around Downtown Houston, SWA identified the opportunity to enact a bold vision: a multi-use branded connectivity system that will leverage the immense reconstruction investment. SWA’s concept creates a continuous pedestrian loop over, under, and around the downtown highway system, thus redirecting the u...
Alief Park and Neighborhood Center
In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Houston was compelled to reassess community preparedness. The 37-acre Alief Center, situated in one of the city’s most culturally diverse areas, addresses longstanding issues of disinvestment and environmental injustice while fostering physical and social resilience.
Elevated above the 100-year floodplain, the...