The Erewhon Market Santa Monica project received an Award of Excellence in the Renovated Buildings category at the 49th Annual Los Angeles Business Council Architectural Awards. The Award of Excellence honors outstanding architecture and design projects that significantly enhance the Los Angeles community’s urban environment. Over 650 leading architects, designers, building owners, developers and city officials were in attendance to celebrate the most innovative designs in Los Angeles.
Representatives from the Erewhon Market Santa Monica project were present at the award ceremony. The team included:
Design Architect: Montalba Architects
Executive Architect: Retail Design Collaborative
Contractor: Abbott Construction
Building Owner: Erewhon Market
Project Manager: Slated Projects
Erewhon Market, an organic grocer that sells ethical and sustainable products is located at 2800 Wilshire Boulevard in the heart of the mixed-use boulevard district in Santa Monica. The original 12,000 sf single-story structure was renovated to a 10,500 sf multi-layered space.
A key design element includes a unique garden terrace that allows patrons to be more connected to the land and to interact socially while shopping. Customers can rest or dine under the cedar trellis surrounded by trees and plantings, while the garden terrace has many sprawling plants that over time will grow on the building to create a lush exterior. Other unique design elements are comprised of skylights, suspended opaque glass and full-height storefront glazing along the north and west façades ― all emphasizing the natural light. Functional aspects consist of an exposed kitchen, an Italian pizza oven, eight different kombuchas on tap and custom display cases.
“L.A. locals know that Erewhon Market is the place to go for products you can trust, and a grocery experience you actually look forward to,” said Larry Lantero, Abbott’s California office operations manager who served as project lead. “It was our goal to build a store worthy of that reputation ― with flawless execution and an enjoyable construction experience for everyone involved. We were honored to have a key role in bringing Erewhon Market to Santa Monica.”
