The Bridge

The Bridge is an immersive campus environment focused on fostering government engagement in University Park, Los Angeles. The space is run in partnership with the City of Los Angeles and is programmed with members of Generation Z in mind.

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T he goal is to empower citizens to become active participants in their democracy through:

• Creating opportunities for personal interactions.

• Breaking the traditional boundaries that separate lawmakers from their constituents.

• Educational programming.

The intention is to make people feel welcome and excited about their participation in their community and the democratic process at large. This begs the question, why is this project relevant for today, and how is it unique for the culture of now? American culture and society has changed greatly since the country’s founding, but these changes have not been reflected in the spaces meant for democratic engagement. It is time to update these spaces to make them relevant, convenient, and useful.

Born between the mid-1990s and 2012, these  young people are stepping to the forefront of the issues they see plaguing their generation, making them more likely to use this type of space. They are now reaching their teenage years and young adulthood, and are very vocal about the issues they care about. 

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They see the dark issues of today as real and pressing, and believe they are the ones to solve them.

The site layout is inspired by a combination of how theme parks are planned and college campuses are built. 

From theme parks, I looked at the welcoming and friendly atmosphere and took cues from the wheel-and-spoke layout of places like Disneyland to emphasize what is at the heart of the project. From colleges, I took note of how buildings with different programs are situated in relation to one another and how they use outdoor spaces to connect them.

A bridge brings people together, it welcomes you with open arms while also inspiring connection when exiting. This then becomes - building bridges among individuals and between people and their government. 

A bridge is designed to bring people together, and this symbolism is visually inviting to visitors.

Los Angeles is structured in such a way that it is divided into smaller and smaller jurisdictions, ending with 272 small, unique neighborhoods

County --> Region --> City --> Neighborhood

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This aligns with the theories behind this project of how to communicate with different levels of government to the population it represents and affects.

With Los Angeles and Gen Z as the initial framework for determining a location, I then began looking at which of the neighborhoods within the city have among the highest percentage of young people living and working there. This brings us to the neighborhood of University Park in the South Los Angeles region.

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The neighborhood also boasts diversity in ethnicity, ancestry, and age that makes it a good micro-sample of the diversity in Los Angeles as a whole.

Some of the criteria for choosing a site includes:

• Easy to get to.

• Large enough for up to 500 people to occupy at one time.

• Within the residential areas of the University Park neighborhood.

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The diversity of spaces within this proposed block is a a micro-sample of the neighborhood itself.

The  materials have been chosen to embrace the spirit of the community while encouraging transparency and collaboration in the space. The main materials include:

• California native timber.

• Colored and patterned ETFE panels.

• Local murals.

• Powder coated metals.

• Various bricks and concretes.

The main entrance specifically faces away from the freeway and toward the residential community, further emphasizing the focus on the target community. All buildings are of single story, though the ceiling heights are stepped higher as you get closer to the center.

This is to make the point that we all enter on the same metaphorical level as equals and, as we work together, our goals can become loftier and more ambitious.

This is the main entrance that brings you from the world of everyday into this space that will fully immerse you in the task of learning and engaging with our representative democracy. It is all about privileging the pedestrian, welcoming visitors with the sweeping open arms of a bridge in forced perspective.

Once inside, a staff member will make that first personal connection that brings the experience with government back down to the more human level. This is a space to appreciate and spend a few moments before passing through to the rest of the experience.

This is  an outdoor gathering place for community groups or casual friends to discuss the topics of today. It is a place for residents of University Park to reclaim their own representation, find a voice and feel inspired to share it with their representatives in person. The wide open spaces encourage young people to gather in a community of people they may not otherwise have an opportunity to interact with.

The heart of The Bridge, The Marketplace is situated at the center of the site and open on all sides for both physical and metaphorical access to all who wander around it. It is inspired by the Greek Agora and Roman Forum where an exchange of goods becomes an exchange of ideas.

Certain permanent spatial anchors bring consistency and familiarity to those who visit on multiple occasions.

Modular and movable furniture and spatial dividers are used to create custom spaces for interactions. These pieces are designed to be used to create custom spaces for varied group gatherings. Because they are a collection, they can be arranged together or separately, and are all on locking castors to provide easy mobility and arrangement.

These buildings are home to offices for  the representatives whose constituents live in University Park. Spaces are provided for all levels of representation, to give them a home base here, though it is understood that representatives cannot always be on site.

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Building A - Neighborhood Council, City Council (District 1), County Supervisor (District 1), Schoolboard (LAUSD District 2).

Building B - Mayor of Los Angeles, LA City Controller and Attorney, Public Safety Officers.

Building C - State Senate (District 30), State Assembly (District 59), US Congress (District 37), US Senate (California).

These two buildings house exhibits  designed to excite young children around how they can make an impact through democratic engagement in their community. One building houses a permanent exhibit - all about how bills become law in the state of California and the city of Los Angeles. The second building is an open space meant for rotating exhibits on topical topics. In 2020, the featured exhibit is all about the census - how it works and why it is so important.