Architects call for redesign of L.A. Convention Center hall, part of AEG NFL project

Citing serious concerns, a group of high-profile architects advising Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on the downtown football stadium are recommending a redesign of the Los Angeles Convention Center hall that is part of the project.

Several members of the "Vision Team," a group of eight architects assembled by Villaraigosa to consult on the project, believe the plan has major flaws, including having visitors enter the new hall through a dark, unsafe space created by stretching the building over Pico Boulevard.

They believe this will so negatively impact Pico Boulevard and the Pico-Union neighborhood that an overhaul is required.

"This is not good city design," Norman Millar, president of the Burbank-based Woodbury University School of Architecture, and one of the Vision Team members, said in an interview this week. "Plain and simple. It's a no-no."

The Vision Team's recommendations, compiled in a formal report released this month, comes as the City Council is set to vote Friday on the project's environmental impact report - the crucial vote that will allow Anschutz Entertainment Group to move forward.

The new hall of the convention center has been AEG's selling point to city officials skeptical of the $1.5 billion football stadium plan. Long derided as a "white elephant," the convention center was built in 1971 and expanded in 1993. The structure is divided into two halls, making it difficult to schedule shows requiring contiguous

But the Vision Team's report raises questions about the new hall's design and how it will impact the downtown area. The team's warnings follow similar concerns voiced by Councilman Ed Reyes over the last six months that the convention center hall design is not pedestrian friendly and would create a barrier between the Pico-Union neighborhood and the rest of the downtown.

The councilman, who sits on the council committee that reviewed the stadium proposal, said he was never made aware of the Vision Team's report. Told of their recommendations Wednesday, Reyes replied, "Wow."

"It would have been to everyone's advantage to see how we can provide the best-case scenario," Reyes added.

The new hall is designed by international architecture firm Populous and overseen by a team of AEG and city officials. L.A.-based firm Gensler is designing AEG's 76,000-seat football stadium. | See photo gallery.

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Architects call for redesign of L.A. Convention Center hall, part of AEG NFL project