Project, sponsor or developer, key designers and excerpts from the jury's comments. The two People's Choice awards were based on the most votes cast online among finalists selected by the jury.
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Click here for photo gallery and an article about the awards.
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Grand Orchid: Aztec Green and SDSU Transit Center, 5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego; sponsors, Metropolitan Transit System, San Diego State University and San Diego Association of Governments; architect, Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects of Portland, Ore. “For a university that has been on the wrong end of Orchids & Onions in previous years, the jury congratulates SDSU and MTS for creating such an effective and attractive mass transit development.”
Grand Onion: The Interstate 5/805 merge; sponsors, California Department of Transportation and San Diego Association of Governments. “The expansion project was well managed but short-sighted. Billions spent and problem not solved.”
AWARDS BY CATEGORY
ARCHITECTURE
Orchid: Francis Parker School expansion, 6501 Linda Vista Road, San Diego; sponsor, Francis Parker School; architect, Lake/Flato Architects of San Antonio. “It does not take a lot of money to do it right. This is a building that will look better in 20 years than it does today.”
Onion and People's Choice Onion Award: Thurgood Marshall Middle School, 9700 Avenue of Nations, San Diego; sponsor, San Diego Unified School District; architect, Joseph Wong Architects of San Diego and Trittipo Architecture & Planning of San Marcos. “(The school) represented the worst of everything – from site planning to banal architecture to the lack of light and air in the classrooms.”
People's Choice Orchid Award: Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens, 1999 Citracado Parkway, Escondido; developer, Stone Brewing Co.; designers, McArdle Associates and David Robinson Design. “A bold symphony of concrete, stone and steel a destination very much in tune with Southern California living.”
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
Orchid: Caltrans District Headquarters, 4050 Taylor St., San Diego; sponsor, California Department of Transportation; landscape architect, Wallace Roberts & Todd of San Diego. “The high cost of real estate in Southern California means we need to make the most of every space. Caltrans has done this with their headquarters site.”
Orchid: Tijuana estuary visitor center and Border Field State Park, 301 Caspian Way, Imperial Beach; sponsor, California Department of Parks and Recreation; designers of visitor center expansion, Safdie Rabines Architects and AEREA landscaping, both of San Diego. “The border is more than just fences and traffic lines our border lands can now be accessed and appreciated like never before.
Orchid: Briercrest Park, 9001 Wakarusa St., La Mesa; sponsor, city of La Mesa; landscape architect, Schmidt Design Group, San Diego; and Cottonwood Creek Park, 95 N. Vulcan Ave., Encinitas; sponsor, Encinitas Parks and Recreation Department; landscape architect, Schmidt Design Group of San Diego. “How often do public parks have stained glass windows in the restrooms? Briercrest Park proves that 'green' really is beautiful.”
Orchid: Cottonwood Creek Park, 95 N. Vulcan Ave., Encinitas; sponsor, Encinitas Parks and Recreation Department; landscape architect, Schmidt Design Group of San Diego. “This type of reclamation project was an ideal way for cities and counties to spend public funds.”
URBAN DESIGN
Orchid: NTC Promenade: Liberty Station at former Naval Training Center, 2801 Rosecrans St., San Diego; McMillin Cos. and Liberty Station Community Association; landscape architect, ONA Inc. “The developers have created a lush oasis ringed with flowering plants and highlighted with water features.”
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Orchid: Paseo de Mission Hills, Washington and Goldfinch streets, San Diego; developers, CLB Partners and R.S. Lawrence Development; architect, M.W. Steele Group. “Sometimes, when adding onto a historic structure, the best way to respect that structure is not to mimic it but to use the materials and forms of today, letting each building reflect its own time.”
Onion: Pipitone Building, 822 Sixth Ave. in the Gaslamp Quarter; developer, Charles Pipitone; architect, James Schmidt. “It's hard to believe that this bland, muddy-yellow box was permitted to be built in our cherished Gaslamp Quarter.”
INTERIOR DESIGN
Orchid: Anthology, 1337 India St. in Little Italy: developer, Howard Berkson; architect and interior designer, Baldauf Catton Von Eckartsberg Architects of San Francisco. “Warm, comfortable and elegant with a restrained palette of color and materials.”
Orchid: The Guild Restaurant, 1805 Newton Ave. in Barrio Logan; developers, Paul Basile and Linda Karp; architect, Blue Motif. “This project is proof once again that it does not cost millions to create something special – it just takes creativity and vision.”
PLANNING POLICIES
Onion: Golden Acorn Casino expansion, 1800 Golden Acorn Way, Campo; sponsor, Campo Indian Band; architect, Group West Companies of Seattle. “The latest example of natural lands being flattened and turned into large gambling meccas dominated by boxy casinos ringed by massive parking lots.”
Onion: Sunroad Centrum office building, Spectrum Center Boulevard and Kearny Villa Road, San Diego; developer, Sunroad Enterprises; architect, Brian Paul & Associates. “It will take years for the courts to sift through the wreckage and place blame.”
PUBLIC ART
Orchid: Copley and Jacobs buildings LED signage, 1100 Kettner Blvd. in downtown San Diego; sponsor, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego; artist, Jenny Holzer. “How often does one see artistic, thought-provoking signage?”
Orchid: “Sea Passage,” fountain at the Glorietta Bay Civic Center and Promenade, 1825 Strand Way, Coronado; sponsor, Coronado city; artist, James Hubbell. “Its fanciful, organic forms serve as a reminder of the power of the ocean and what it has to offer.”
Onion: “Magic Carpet Ride,” Chesterfield Drive at S. Coast Highway, Cardiff-by-the-Sea: sponsor, Cardiff Botanical Society; artist, Matthew Antichevich. “The bronze statue is an awkward and misguided tribute and should be sent away for some weight-lifting and surfing lessons.”
SUSTAINABILITY
Orchid (building) and Onion (development context): Del Sur Ranch House, 15455 Paseo del Sur, San Diego; developer, Black Mountain Ranch LLC; architect, Fullerton Architects of Kalispell, Mont. “The use of natural materials and the lovely landscaping create a very attractive structure worthy of an Orchid. However, the ranch house is merely a token facade on an otherwise unsustainable suburban housing subdivision.”
Orchid: Hammond Lofts, 3033 India St., San Diego; developer, Greg Stangman, LWP Group; architect, Perisic Design Studio of San Diego. “Humble, simple and unpretentious, this project recognizes that a building need not be 100 years old to be worthy of saving.”
Orchid: Children's Museum, 200 W. Island Ave., San Diego; sponsor, Children's Museum of San Diego; architect, Rob Wellington Quigley. “The building is a great example of how sustainability can be incorporated into new construction with its dynamic use of daylighting, recycled materials and photovoltaic systems.”
Event co-chairmen: David McCullough and David Preciado.
Jurors: Bill Chopyk, La Mesa planning director and president of the local chapter of the American Planning Association; Chuck Crawford, NewSchool of Architecture & Design professor; Paul Ericson, vice president of lighting design, Syska Hennessy Group; Christopher Gustard, landscape architect and past president of the local chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects; Larry Herzog, San Diego State University professor; Jim Holmberg, architect, St. Vincent de Paul and Father Joe's Villages; Cheryl Keenan, executive director, Habitat for Humanity San Diego; and Robert Treat, artist and instructor, San Diego Art Academy.
SOURCE: San Diego Architectural Foundation, Orchids & Onions Committee.
