Beverly Hills, CA

The compact and affluent community of Beverly Hills has no outskirts, meaning that its new water treatment plant would necessarily have to be built in plain sight. But out of this necessity emerged an opportunity for architectural enrichment and civic engagement. The result is a facility that not only treats water, but raises infrastructure to the realm of public space.

The design creates a quiet but distinguished character for the 32,000 sf building, which is located in a mixed residential and commercial area. A glass entrance lantern, overhung by a wave-shaped elliptical roof, reveals the activity within to passerby. An elliptical shaped multi-purpose room, dramatically clad in undulating channel-glass, extends this idea with a direct visual connection to the water plant itself, allowing school groups and the general public to learn about the source of their water. The room is available for meetings or receptions appropriate to an environment symbolically connected to the life of the city. A small outdoor amphitheater, echoing the curves of the multi-purpose room, provides a place both for performances and sitting. Extensive use of sandstone and glass throughout the building evokes the elements of a creek while maintaining a modern character.

The resulting building involves citizens with the systems that sustain their city. Included in the program was an exhibit on the history of water in Southern California – furthering the goal of making a facility that is typically opaque to public understanding both functional and educational. The building demonstrates Beverly Hills' commitment to a positive vision of the future through environmental and economic sustainability.