YMCA of La Jolla
The existing YMCA is in a residential neighborhood surrounded by an elementary school and park playing fields. The goals for this project are to provide the YMCA with identity, to create a “Town Square” entry as a center of activities such as a cafe and greeting area, to connect outdoor functions with indoor functions, to create new entrances as well as indoor and outdoor lobbies, providing kids with a place to congregate at an entrance, but still be outdoors.
The design will also retain much of the existing building while creating additions like a new full-size indoor and competition-size outdoor pool, and children’s facilities near the entry with their own “architecture”, keeping in mind the necessary separation between youth and senior users, by pacing their respective uses apart from each other with circulation, but allowing for transparency.
Other goals for this project are: to organize building elements to reduce their apparent exterior mass, to reorganize parking with adjacent facilities in mind, to accommodate the number of people who now use the YMCA, the adjacent playing fields and elementary school grounds. All goals will be accomplished with as little disruption to the surrounding neighborhood as possible, by creating a buffer between YMCA users and neighbors.
