Milton Street Park is a 1.2-acre linear urban park alongside the Ballona Creek Bike Trail in Los Angeles, California. The plan incorporates numerous green-design elements, including the use of recycled materials, native planting, flow-through planters and treatment alongside the 1,000-foot-long, 45-foot-wide stretch of land. A variety of special elements such as bird-watching platforms, bike trail enhancements, seating and outdoor picnic areas enhance the visitor experience along the trail. The promotion of alternative transportation and the creation of an interpretative ecological habitat for birds, insects, and reptiles creates a sustainable network within an existing urban environment. SWA, in conjunction with the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, conducted community meetings, including a public design workshop to ensure that the design and safety needs of the residents were acknowledged and addressed in the plan conceptualized and presented by SWA.
Nickerson Gardens Playground
Originally designed in 1955 by architect Paul Revere Williams, Nickerson Gardens is a 1,066-unit apartment complex in Watts, South Los Angeles — the largest social housing project west of the Mississippi. Core to Williams’ vision was an emphasis on shared open space, but its central playground, neglected for years, fell into a state of disrepair. In collaborat...
Embankment Square
The Embankment Square is located along the east bank of the Huangpu River in Shanghai. The project consists of landscape areas in three office parcels and one waterfront park parcel. The view of the site is remarkable, looking toward the landmark skyscrapers of Lujiazui Financial Center, Nanpu Bridge, the Bund, and the Minsheng CBD.
The design concept c...
Tianjin Eco-City
The vision for Tianjin Eco-City is of a socially harmonious, environmentally friendly, and resource-efficient model for sustainable development. The new city encompasses two flagship civic projects: the National Maritime Museum and the surrounding South Bay Park. South Bay Park is the project’s central green infrastructure, but also provides a significant outd...
Houston’s Gateway Art Bridges : I-59/69 Beautification
As a city dominated by freeway infrastructure, Houston will be reconstructing portions of its iconic freeways in the near future. This created an opportunity for SWA to reclaim the Houston Interstate experience with a temporary art installation that provides a bold pop of color celebrating Houston’s diversity at eight key threshold bridges along the I-59/69 co...