By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
George Wolfberg Park at Potrero Canyon was honored during the 54th annual Los Angeles Architectural Awards, hosted by LA Business Council.
The park received the Chairman’s Award, with City of Los Angeles as the landscape architect, Marrs Services Inc. as the architect of record, Ford E.C. Inc. as the contractor, and city of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks as the building owner and developer.
“Potrero Canyon spans 46 acres of steep slopes along the coastline of the Pacific Palisades,” read a statement from LABC. “To stabilize Potrero Canyon’s unstable slopes and prevent landslides, the team buttressed infill at a 2:1 slope and simultaneously restored a natural habitat. A new drainage system was installed with natural tan colored terrace drains as well as a pump station and storm drain that control water in canyon.”
George Wolfberg Park at Potrero Canyon officially opened on Saturday, December 10, 2022, with a celebration attended by local officials, community members and the Wolfberg family.
It features riparian landscaping, scenic ocean views, as well as fences and gates to ensure adherence to park hours, which is sunrise to sundown.
The City of Los Angeles Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners voted during a meeting in January 2021 to approve the naming of the park in honor of late community member and activist George Wolfberg.
Wolfberg, who died in February 2020, was chair of the Potrero Canyon Community Advisory Committee, which was formed to help the city manage the design of the project.
The final speaker during the one-hour program in December 2022 was Wolfberg’s nephew, Andrew.
“Uncle George would be honored to have this park named after him, but would take great pride knowing that people were inspired by his volunteering and decide to become volunteers themselves,” Andrew shared. “If you feel inspired to volunteer to help your community, get off the sidelines, do something. Please find an organization that can use your help and your time, tell them that Uncle George sent you.”
The Chairman’s Award presentation was delivered by Marie Lloyd, Amazon and LABC Chair David Nahai. Other projects in the category included Port of Los Angeles Wilmington Waterfront Promenade and Wishing Tree Park.
“Winning projects were selected from a pool of hundreds of submissions in design categories ranging from adaptive reuse to landscape architecture,” a representative said.
The gala, which took place at Beverly Hilton hotel, was co-chaired by Nadine Watt, Watt Capital Partners & Lexi Barry, and Gensler.
The annual awards are designed to be a “celebration of projects that embrace innovative design standards to enhance the way we live in Los Angeles.”
“Congratulations to this year’s winning teams and projects,” read the statement.
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