MILE 34: JOSE DEVORA
LA MESA
Existing conditions: Mile 34 of the Los Angeles river is located in the city of Vernon, ca. This site was the battle field for the battle of La Mesa or also known as the last battle of Los Angeles, which was fought in January 7,1847, in the Mexican-American war. The site today is exclusively Industrial, having a population of 112 people and a worker community of about 50,000 workers. The worker community has no involvement in the surrounding environment; workers usually eat lunch and take their breaks in parking lots. Along this site there is abandoned train tracks that are full of potential.
Design purpose: My goal for this design is to activate the abandoned train tracks and use them as pedestrian corridors, mainly for the worker community of Vernon. The design will also contain a memorial acknowledging the history of the site. Elements from the surrounding area were taken into consideration especially the train tracks, the tracks will provide a continuous path that leads to “la mesa”, which is an overhead structure that gives people an opportunity be elevated and explore the surrounding views.
51 + PROPOSITIONS FOR THE LOS ANGELES RIVER 