It came down to one glaring error

When it opened its doors in fall 2003, critics hailed Walt Disney Concert Hall as a shining example of contemporary architecture. But months before opening night, neighbors of the undulating stainless steel structure at 1st Street and Grand Avenue were already grumbling that maybe it was a little too shiny.

Downtown condominium owners whose units face the $274-million hall complained that afternoon glare off the building’s brightest surfaces -- the mirror-like exterior of the Founders Room -- was causing temperatures to rise by as much as 15 degrees inside their units. Residents were forced to flee patios, draw blinds and crank up air conditioners.

Los Angeles County, which owns the hall, hired a consultant, and in the meantime, the offending portions were covered with a modest, gray synthetic mesh net. In November, an environmental impact report concluded the obvious: Disney Hall has a glaring problem. Terry Bellan, architect at Gehry Partners, says that remedial work will proceed soon after county supervisors vote on the architects’ recommendations in January.

“It will be something very simple; one option is sandblasting, the other is to use a nondirectional brushed finish,” Bell says. “The tiles will remain, the surface will be modified. It’s about a two-week process.”