Avenue 34

Photographer Credits: Paul Vu, Here and Now Agency (HANA)

TOUR DETAILS

Avenue 34 offers AIA members the opportunity to experience a large-scale, transit-oriented housing development that brings density, open space, and community integration into alignment. Located in Lincoln Heights near the Heritage Square/Arroyo Station, the project combines 468 mixed-income residential units with ground-floor retail within a five-acre site organized around a network of pedestrian paseos and courtyards.

The tour highlights how the site planning prioritizes the pedestrian experience through more than 1.5 acres of landscaped open space, enabled by placing parking below grade. Attendees will see how three residential buildings are arranged to break down scale, preserve light and air, and create a connected campus environment that supports both residents and the surrounding neighborhood.

The project also features a range of amenities that extend daily living beyond the units, including landscaped gathering areas, a pool deck, co-working spaces, lounges, and rooftop terraces. Interior common areas are designed to support both social interaction and flexible work, with light-filled spaces, varied seating, and contemporary finishes. A curated art program showcases work by local artists throughout the development, integrating art into everyday spaces and strengthening the connection to the surrounding creative community.

The project draws from the neighborhood’s industrial character through its use of stucco and corrugated metal, while selective use of bold color accents helps define identity and support wayfinding across the site. Avenue 34 provides a clear example of how design can support livability, connectivity, and housing diversity in Los Angeles.

The tour will take approximately 60 minutes.

TOUR HOSTS

Lise Bornstein, AIA – Partner, KFA Architecture

Lise Bornstein, AIA served as Partner in Charge for Avenue 34, guiding the project from concept through completion. She has devoted her career to placemaking, creating spaces and opportunities where people and communities thrive. She has advanced this work through her architectural design practice and her advocacy for professional growth within her firm and for women in architecture. As a partner at KFA Architecture, Lise is responsible for business development, project conceptualization and design, as well as office operations and culture. She supports the firm’s organizational structure, mentorship, and career development for its 80+ employees. In her design role, Lise focuses on strong concepts that support wellness and livability. She has led projects and campus master plans with complex entitlement processes, multiple funding sources, and extensive community outreach, working collaboratively with clients, consultants, contractors, and in-house teams. Her portfolio includes affordable and permanent supportive housing, market-rate and mixed-use multifamily housing, and campus developments such as the West Los Angeles VA Campus Master Plan, Enlightenment Plaza, PATH Metro Villas, and 24 Campus. She is a Past President and current board member of the Association for Women in Architecture Foundation and remains committed to advancing people and the profession.

Kristyn Cosgrove, AIA – Senior Associate, KFA Architecture

Kristyn Cosgrove, AIA is a Senior Associate and project manager at KFA Architecture with nearly two decades of experience at KFA. Her portfolio spans affordable, market-rate and mixed-use housing developments throughout LA County, including Avenue 34. As a native Angeleno, she is dedicated to contributing to Los Angeles’s architectural evolution by designing buildings that support and enrich its communities. Known for her collaborative and organized approach, Kristyn excels at guiding complex projects from initial design conception through permitting and construction documentation. She enjoys working closely with clients to realize their specific visions, finding the most rewarding aspect of the profession is the moment a project is completed and ready to be experienced.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Examine methods for integrating mixed-income housing within a single development to support a range of affordability levels within a unified design framework.
2. Identify design strategies that support resident experience, including amenity spaces, interior common areas, and ground-floor uses that accommodate a range of daily activities.
3. Evaluate site planning approaches that organize large-scale multifamily housing into connected buildings, courtyards, and pedestrian pathways while prioritizing open space and access to daylight.
4. Analyze how transit-oriented development strategies can support increased residential density while reducing parking demand and encouraging alternative modes of transportation.
5. Review how building massing, orientation, and material selection can respond to neighborhood context while maintaining light, air, and visual connections across a dense urban site.
6. Assess the role of materials, color, façade articulation, and art integration in establishing identity, supporting wayfinding, and enhancing the architectural experience.

Note: The tour will be led by a group of three to four guides to support discussion and engagement, including KFA Partner Lise Bornstein, AIA; Senior Associate Kristyn Cosgrove, AIA; Senior Project Director Juan Villalta, AIA; and a representative from the client team to be confirmed.

TOUR MEETING SPOT

The tour will begin near the leasing office, located on W Avenue 34 near the corner of Pasadena Avenue.

PARKING

Parking is available along W Avenue 34 and Pasadena Avenue, with additional street parking typically available throughout the surrounding neighborhood.

For those using public transportation, the site is conveniently served by Metro Rail via the A Line. The nearest stations are Lincoln/Cypress Station (approximately a 5–10 minute walk) and Heritage Square Station (approximately a 10–15 minute walk). Metro Bus service is also available, with stops located along Pasadena Avenue and Avenue 34 adjacent to the site.

FULL CREDIT LIST (Architects, Builders, Engineers, Interior design, etc.)

• General Contractor: Bernards
• Structural Engineer: Holmes Structural Engineering
• Landscape Architect: MIG
• Interior Design: ETC.etera & Anne Rezac
• Civil Engineer: Kimley-Horn
• MEP: Coffman Engineers
• Art Curation: The Feel