LA Metro Division 13 Bus Operations & Maintenance Facility
A highly innovative facility that contributes to the fabric of the neighborhood with its exemplary focus on sustainability and contrast of human and urban scales.
Client
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Project Size
520,000 sf, 10.2 acre site
Building Performance
Pursuing LEED-NC Gold
Awards
USGBC Sustainable Innovation Awards, Honor Award, Water Efficiency
Los Angeles Business Journal - Silver Award for Most Sustainable Project
Building Design + Construction - Silver Award for Building Design Team
IIDA Rocky Mountain Chapter Best Awards
Professional Services
Architecture
Interior Design
Landscape Architecture
Lighting Design
The LA Metro Division 13 Bus Operations and Maintenance facility in Downtown Los Angeles is the first ground-up bus operations and maintenance facility for Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) in nearly 30 years.
The innovative, highly sustainable facility accommodates 200 clean-air, CNG-fueled buses and 525 employees. The 4.8 acre footprint facility was stacked vertically to fit 12.4 acres of program into a compact, urban site which inspired the major architectural elements of the ‘ribbon roof’ canopy and the linear southern façade that cover and screen the internal ramps and storage for buses. This primary architectural gesture was designed to express the fast, urban, auto-dominated avenue that it fronts, but also stands in contrast to the adjacent transportation building elevation that was designed to relate to the pedestrian scale and create a humanized, approachable face to the agency. The ‘slow’ façade was further highlighted by the public plaza and illuminated art lantern integrated into the architecture.
The design was not only meant to be highly functional, sustainable, and efficient, but also an energetic, restorative project that created a healthier work environment and would be a sought after location for employees. In addition to the photovoltaic, 100% rain-water capture, and green roof systems, the naturally illuminated people spaces, the vibrant and open interiors, and the shared fitness studio all contribute to the triple bottom line principles of sustainability.
RNL designed a facility that stands in stark contrast to the uninspired spaces that have become commonplace with most transit facilities. Division 13 is sleek, modern and beautiful and a fine addition to Downtown whose environmental elements should be a model for other buildings, whether they come from government or the private sector.
Sustainable Design Features
- 100of the captured water is supplied to the bus washers
- 80of the water used is internally recycled to be reused in the wash cycle
- 1first green roof for LA Metro Facility
- 10of the facility's energy usage is provided by photovoltaic panels
The project contains nearly 1,200 solar panels, which a Metro executive estimates will provide up to 10% of the power it uses. The list goes on, and the LEED-NC Gold building is the most impressive Downtown governmental building on an environmental basis.
Meet the team
Pat
McKelvey
Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi
Pat McKelvey is Senior Principal, Los Angeles Office Studio Lead and MENA Region Director. In addition to producing award-winning design work in 20 countries, over the course of his 30 years with RNL, Pat has been instrumental in setting up successful offices for RNL in Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Rich
von Luhrte
Emeritus Board Member
In service to community and profession, Richard L. von Luhrte has made our communities better places to live, work and visit. You would be hard-pressed to find someone more passionate about placemaking or more committed to advancing the craft of Architecture, and we are proud to have him as a Senior Principal and Emeritus Board Member at RNL.
