The project is the result of a collaboration among L.A.-based developer Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), the city of Los Angeles, and numerous consultants including planning and architecture firm RTKL. The firm has provided urban design, architecture, and environmental graphic design for several buildings and public spaces within the L.A. Live development.

 
The third and final phase of the project is expected to be completed in late 2009/early 2010. L.A. Live is adjacent to the STAPLES Center and Los Angeles Convention Center. "L.A. Live will capitalize on and expand what's currently on offer at both the convention center and STAPLES Center, creating an urban sports and entertainment district that outshines all others," says Jay Clark, a vice president in RTKL's Los Angeles office.

 
RTKL developed a design scheme that focuses on creating an urbanist-inspired civic gathering place that features a dense mix of users and is populated with pedestrians most hours of the day and night. L.A. Live's plazas, promenades, and streets are designed to accommodate a wider variety of activities than typical outdoor spaces would at ground level, and so sidewalks are wider and zoned for outdoor dining, strolling, and window shopping. The central plaza is designed for activities of varying scale and scope—outdoor dining and individual seating wind around the perimeter of the plaza to accommodate intimate gatherings, while large LED sign boards and totems rigged with light and sound dominate the heart of the plaza for larger celebrations. With building lobbies oriented out toward the public right of way, public spaces are continually refreshed with pedestrians throughout the day and evening.

 
"L.A. Live stands on a site that was once surface parking lots and warehouses," Clark explains. "Today, it's a vibrant urban district that uses the arena and the convention center as fulcrums for regeneration."