Panorama City Urban Design Assistance Team One place that bears particular watching is Panorama City. The predominately Latino section of the northeast Valley is now attempting a bold new approach to uplift itself through the creation of a new village-like environment. If successful, it could mark the beginning of a remarkable comeback.
Panorama City represents a particularly intriguing locale because it was so much a part of the post-war Valley experience. It epitomized what might be called a mass-industrial approach to community building. Announced in 1945 by land developer Fritz B. Burns and industrialist Henry J. Kaiser, Panorama City was envisioned as "a grand venture to build tens of thousands of mass-produced homes on the West Coast."
By the standards of the time, Panorama City was state of the art. To reduce the monotony of such a large tract, Burns curved the streets, altered rooflines, varied the placement of garages, and used vibrant colors. These were tracts that were meant to be more than collections of homes; they included schools, playgrounds, churches, a Kaiser Permanente hospital, a movie theater and a bowling alley.
Like so much of the Valley, Panorama City reached its height in the 1950s. It boasted a booming shopping district with 100-plus shops including several major department stores such as Broadway, Robinson's, Montgomery Ward, and Orbach's—and eighteen acres of parking lots.
The houses built in Panorama City were designed to be homes with minimum floor plans at affordable prices, and their location was driven by their close proximity to "regional industries such as General Motors, Anheuser-Busch, Lockheed, and Rocketdyne." Therefore, veterans and others could find gainful employment, become homeowners, and locate their families in a "total community." In fact, "The National Association of Home Builders awarded Panorama City its first prize in the Best Neighborhood Development category in 1949 and both the building trades and architectural press showcased the project." Although the houses were based on minimum floor plans, "Burns argued for a variety in unit prices ‘to provide a varied community atmosphere and to prevent un-American economic and social stratification.'" The 1950 Census showed that Panorama City did accomplish the class heterogeneity and occupational diversity Burns desired.
"Building a City where a City belongs" was the slogan used on Panorama City print advertisements. "And yet, the careful design was fatally flawed; a close separation between residences, employment, recreation, and public institutions worked against the creation of a village atmosphere." The intentional planning also did not insulate Panorama City from the demographic and economic shifts that soon swept much of the north Valley.
By the 1990s, Panorama City was predominately Latino, and much of that population was poor and living in substandard homes. Crime and gangs became rampant; many of the post-war buildings dilapidated and abandoned. In recent years there have been more concerted efforts to address these challenges, largely from the grass-roots level. Business organizations like the local Wells Fargo Bank, the Panorama and the Mid-Valley Chamber of Commerce have all promoted festivals and events to appeal to the increasingly Latino population. Efforts have also been made by religious organizations and social service agencies to provide anti-gang support, such as an organization known as Graffiti Busters, and stand to offer English as a second language instruction to local residents.
While endeavors listed above are a sign of hope and renewal, perhaps the missing element has been the creation of a sense of space and identity. To meet this need, the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the Urban Design Assistance Team—a multidisciplinary team made up of several architects and other professionals chaired by architect Jerry Pollak—is putting together a study and plan for the redevelopment and renewal of Panorama City. They are working separately from but in cooperation with the L.A. City Planning Department represented by Tom Rath.
The Urban Design Assistance Team iplan calls for new streetscapes, mixed-use development and greater use of transit corridors. All of the above are elements that lead to the creation of a community identity, but according to Jerry Pollak, the UDAT Team does not want to impose their ideas on the community at large. They want to hear what the residents are concerned about and what they want in their community. If they gather strong support, Panorama City may be the next community in the Valley, following the lead of Burbank and San Fernando, to start building its own urban village.
Sources:
Hise, Gregory. Magnetic Los Angeles Baltimore, Maryland: The Johns Hopkins University Press. 1997Kevin Roderick, The San Fernando Valley: America's Suburb. Los Angeles Times Books, Los Angeles. 2001
Rath, Tom, Los Angeles Department of City Planning, Interview, 2003
Pollak, Jerry, Architect, Interview, 2003
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Karin Lane (MPP '05) is director of the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission Program of AMPATH, which runs 23 HIV/AIDS clinics in Kenya.
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