City of Santa Monica: City Hall East Building

“At a time when Los Angeles turns to its architects to address some our greatest challenges, these winning projects contribute to quality of life in Los Angeles and points beyond, through the realization of design excellence.” – 2019 AIA|LA President Barbara Bouza, FAIA

The Santa Monica City Hall East Building officially opened its doors on Earth Day 2020. From the start, city officials envisioned the City Hall East as among the greenest buildings in the world. The City Hall East Building exceeds Santa Monica’s current sustainability standards and has set international records as the first municipal structure to receive Living Building Challenge Certification as a Net Zero Water and Net Zero Energy building.

A globally inspiring facility, it reflects the community’s commitment to sustainability and sets an example for the future of all built environments. Going a step beyond LEED and general sustainable design, the City chose to fulfill the Living Building Challenge certification.
The City committed to making a change. After nearly two years of code alterations and negotiations with City, County, and State regulatory agencies, the team had achieved approval to be the first building in California to be granted the rights to convert rain-to-potable water on site, and the first in the United States to use more than a dozen composting toilets in a single facility. It is the first municipal building of its size and density in the world striving to achieve these Living Building Challenge goals.
Dealing with departments spread across the City and suffering from the subsequent problems that arise from this separation, the City of Santa Monica worked with us to relocate its services operating groups into a single City Hall campus for the public benefit. This alone saves the City thousands of dollars a month in rental fees, travel costs, and building maintenance.

Our team coordinated and is executing an advocacy campaign around walkability and active commuting amongst other City sites and the Metro routes. Long and short-term bicycle storage infrastructure and on-site showers (that align with the building’s water budget) encourage mobility and sustainable commutes while subsidies, monetary incentives and electric vehicle charging stations help motivate staff to use electric vehicles, public transportation, and carpool.
From the start, city officials envisioned the City Hall East as among the greenest buildings in the world. The City Hall East Building exceeds Santa Monica’s current sustainability standards and has set international records as the first municipal structure to receive Living Building Challenge Certification as a Net Zero Water and Net Zero Energy building.
The City and this building have not only prepared their community for a more socially, economically, and environmentally responsible future, it has set the stage for other municipalities across the nation to implement their own LBC and sustainable initiatives. By centralizing many public services into one building, commutes are eliminated for the public and city staff.
The first floor combines public services and workspaces: the permit counter and naturally-lit waiting area greet visitors, while employees slip back to the open-plan offices furnished by modular desks and rolling chairs. Adjacent to this area, is a publicly accessible courtyard, which features and edible garden available to anyone.
Open work areas define the center of the City Hall East Building’s subsequent two floors, meeting rooms and specialized offices flanking them on each side. An internal hallway on the second floor connects the original City Hall Building to the City Hall East Building, giving employees easy access from one building to the other.
Each floor features expansive breakrooms and kitchens. The design invites frequent interaction between city employees, providing comfortable spaces for casual and formal conversation—whether in small meeting rooms or at kitchen islands, coffee bars or long, window-facing desks. A fluid layout facilitates efficient movement between one workstation and the next, or one wing and the next.
Video Credits Courtesy of Buro Happold: MEP Engineer, Facades, Lighting, Sustainability and Living Building Consultant
Video: Prismedia LLC

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