Los Angeles, CA

This subway station is part of the expanding subterranean public transit system that connects downtown Los Angeles with various outlying areas. The station, located along Vermont Avenue, a major north/south boulevard west of downtown Los Angeles, serves nearby businesses, residences and institutions, such as Los Angeles City College and the Braille Institute. The station consists of an urban transit plaza from which the station is entered, and the subterranean station which includes ticketing mezzanine and train platform.

The plaza is conceived of as an urban square whose western edge is defined by a series of retail shops that enliven the public life of the square. The entry to the station is marked by a single powerful and sculptural gesture, a large elliptical metal canopy that appears to hover over the station entry. A smaller glass elevator is enclosed in a canted glass enclosure to serve disabled passengers. A row of tall custom light standards painted bright red illuminate the square at night and serve to create a monumental scale and rhythm along the street during the day.

The transition from the plaza into the station is modulated by a glass block skylight over the escalator passage. This space softens the transition from bright sunlight to the muted light of the interior of the station. The interior of the station is defined by a series of stainless steel elliptical louvers that recall the shape of the entry canopy and by extensive stainless steel paneling.

The Santa Monica/Vermont Station is the only subterranean subway station to receive the prestigious Progressive Architecture (PA) Design Award.

• Project was designed by Mehrdad Yazdani during his tenure as Design Principal at Ellerbe Becket.