Community Center

The Community Center occupies the East edge of the site at midpoint. This is where Michel Torena bends and becomes California Street. This is the site of the previous hospital auditorium and the old ER ambulance entry.

Many visitors first recognize the site as a public facility from this vantage point. Therefore this was a good place to site a new entry plaza and a large public use building.

There is a steep grade change here that allows both floors to have at grade access for accessibility. Large windows on the ground floor fold up into the ceiling to create a open pavilion.

The upstairs rooms follow the angle of California Street while the lower floor follows the angle of Michel Torena. The materials are of recycled concrete and timber left in a rough and aged appearance.

Row Houses

The Row Houses are designed to present a solid concrete wall to the South and the West to control solar heat gain. The East and North sides are simple wooden screens that can open a majority of the wall to light, breezes, and social interactions. However, the South facade also includes a large shuttered window opening to allow users to access the ocean views and to invite the cool evening breezes.

The buildings incorporate underground parking either from the remaining hospital garages or by new carport style ground floors. The concrete walls incorporate multiple living space necessities and are "wet walls" for plumbing and electrical. This leaves the North and East portions simple and light to float over the hillside views.

The materials are recycled concrete and timber. Earlier models used white titanium cement in the concrete to "eat CO2" and to keep to the Hispanic style. However, in the interest of the sensitive eyes of senior residents this has been changed to the natural grey resultant from the recycling process. In this second model the wood is stained light instead of dark with natural oils and wax as a finish.

Funicular

Santa Barabar's has a tradition of public stairs connecting the switch-back streets of the Riviera hills. However, in the interest of seniors and others with difficulty managing stairs an elevated, inclined rail line could also organize the site up the terrace levels.



The elevators to the line could reach all the way down to the underground parking left over from the ol dhospital.



The concrete columns supporting the rail line could be made from recycled concrete pre-cast into 20 ft panels secured by a central beam that is raised or lowered to level the line.



Each set of concrete panels could be braced by a graceful timber bridge-trus that would also provide some flexibility under lateral stresses.



At night each panel could be lit from below to assist in navigation and saftey and also to provide a dramatic accent on the city skyline.