ESPN Zone at L.A. Live

The new $15 million 29,000 square foot facility is part of a highly visible downtown development known as LA LIVE, a world-class sports and entertainment destination covering an expanse of six city blocks. The project attempts to create an energetic and urban environment in the entertainment heart of Los Angeles. Located directly across from the Staples Center, this project came out of a longstanding relationship between TRM and ESPN Zone, including previous projects in Denver, San Francisco, Baltimore and Las Vegas.

The project includes multiple dining spaces and four sports bars with a large audio/video component plus exclusive, private VIP lounge areas. The entrance to the curved glass entry with lighted signage houses the spacious multi-level lobby providing ample daylighting. The dynamic exterior of the building accommodates large digital signage and displays while using sleek modern materials appropriate to the youthful and energetic atmosphere of the complex.

Lighting, texture, media, and technology played major roles in the design, creating spaces reflective of modern sports entertainment in keeping with the project’s association with ESPN Zone, a national leader in sports broadcasting. Interior dining takes place amidst an eloquent setting of cherry wood and black granite while exterior dining is located along a shaded patio adjacent to plantings and the busy LA Live shops and storefronts.

Bar designs are playful and energetic, each containing unique materials, lighting and displayed media to create a unique setting in each case. TRM successfully finished the project while working under tremendous budget, schedule, and space constraints. TRM coordinated with multiple agencies when seeking a permit within the city of Los Angeles. Multiple floor levels had to be accommodated and the design had to be adjusted to conform to reduced floor area dictated by the expansion of ESPN’s broadcast presence.