W. Hollywood : Civic Center Design Contest Narrowed to 5

West Hollywood has picked five semifinalists in an international competition to design a $24.5-million civic center for the 2-year-old city.

Among the ideas chosen Monday from the 292 entries was one inspired by the movie “Singing in the Rain” and another offering skyline views of the Hollywood Hills from an outdoor performance garden.

The civic center will be built at West Hollywood Park on San Vicente Boulevard. It will include a library, a fire station, city council chambers, city offices, sports facilities and parks.

The finalists are Janek Bielski of Los Angeles, Edmund Chang and Roger Sherman of Boston, Michael Folonis of Santa Monica, Donald Genasci of Eugene, Ore., and Michael Pyatok of Oakland.

‘Diverse Themes’

The five proposals “represent a fairly diverse set of themes,” said Michael Pittas, an urban designer who coordinated the competition.

Pyatok’s project features twisted columns and a tall glass obelisk to be lit at night. “The Tower of Light and Achievement” would have quotations by notable West Hollywood residents etched into the glass. The project includes an “Allee de Barbeque” containing alcoves equipped with “ritualized masonry barbecue altars,” according to the project description.

Pyatok, who recently won a competition to design Oakland’s city hall, said he usually designs low-income housing. “I thought I’d take a crack at the high end. . . . Just because I serve the poor, it doesn’t mean I’m culturally unenriched,” he said.

Pyatok said his extensive use of gardens “softens the image of government.”

‘Long and Linear’

Bielski said his project is “long and linear as opposed to massive and bulky” like the huge blue Pacific Design Center across the street. Architects were instructed to consider the proximity of that building in designing the civic center.

Bielski said his buildings would be placed at the edge of the street to maximize the size of the park land.

The entry inspired by “Singing in the Rain” was designed by Folonis, whose display includes photographs from the film. A scene in which three characters dance in unison with umbrellas is credited with inspiring the symmetry of a three-building layout of city hall, auditorium and library. In addition, “the curved lines of the umbrellas are suggested by the curved, metal-supported canvas awnings” on the buildings, according to the proposal statement.

Genasci’s design features cylindrical council chambers, a public square and leasable commercial space.

The proposal by Chang and Sherman includes the performance garden, a palm grove and a swimming pool.

The five semifinalists have two months to recruit a design team and submit more comprehensive plans.

A jury of architectural experts, designers and city officials judged the proposals. Designs were submitted by architects and artists from 25 countries, including Czechoslovakia and Zimbabwe.

Rejected proposals included a futuristic vision of the center painted on canvas and a design that claimed to “metaphorically express the David vs. Goliath scenario.”

A proposal titled “Eve and Adam”, featuring a huge glass Eve resting on an American flag on the roof of the building, received one of 10 special awards by the jury. The Japanese creators of “Eve and Adam” lauded the “Make love, not war” sentiment of the 1960s and wrote: “Someday we hope to see Reagan and Gorbachev swim together in the pool under the glass Eve.”

All the proposals will be on public display in a white tent on San Vicente Boulevard from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily through Aug. 15. Cards will be provided for viewers to write comments or suggestions.

A winner will be chosen by the jury Oct. 5. The selection must be approved by the City Council, which is looking for “a structure that will symbolize how excited we are about our city,” said Mayor Alan Viterbi.