606 Studio

The 606 Studio is a consortium of faculty and graduate students in the Department of Landscape Architecture at the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. The Studio promotes the application of advanced methods of analysis and design with particular emphasis on the preservation and restoration of sensitive natural systems. Projects address complex and critical ecological, social and aesthetic issues related to urban, suburban, rural and natural landscapes.

  • Approach
  • Project Selection
  • Timing
  • Budgets
  • Awards
  • Past 606 Studio Projects
  • How to Contact Us Regarding a Project

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    Approach

    Projects are carried out by teams of third-year graduate students and members of the graduate faculty. Working with the direction and continuous participation of the faculty group, graduate students perform the tasks of research, analysis, planning and presentation. Design approaches vary considerably depending on the scope and character of the project, and will address a combination of ecological, social, cultural, and aesthetic issues. Despite these variations, all projects utilize the framework of ecological design as developed by the Cal Poly Pomona graduate program. This approach stresses sensitive understanding of principles of ecology in relation to human uses.

    Projects result in professionally-printed reports that may include conceptual plans, schematic site designs, land use plans, or management studies. Past projects have covered a wide variety of topics, including

    • community revitalization
    • greenway planning and design
    • urban design,
    • historic preservation,
    • watershed planning,
    • open space and habitat management,
    • campus planning.
    • park and recreation design
    • tourism planning

    Project Selection

    The academic studio environment offers a unique opportunity for graduate students to explore issues and possibilities. Because it functions within an educational institution, the 606 Studio bears the responsibility to maintain academic integrity, advance the state of the art, and contribute to the public well-being. However implementation concerns and client needs demand that projects have a strong practical base, as well as display technical and professional expertise. Projects undertaken by the Studio are expected to satisfy the following criteria:

    • They must address significant issues concerning resources and the physical environment, with broad implications beyond the boundaries of the project site, and sometimes beyond the immediate concerns of the client.
       
    • They must promise to result in significant benefits to the general public.
       
    • They should be complex, requiring the application of advanced methods beyond those routinely used in the field.
       
    • Sufficient time and support must be available to explore all promising approaches, to do a thorough job, and to communicate the results clearly and completely.
       
    • The results must become public information.

     

    Timing

    The schedule of 606 projects is fixed by the academic year. Project definition and organization begins in October each year, with actual work beginning in the first week of January. Work must be completed and print-ready reports submitted and approved in June. Printed documents are available in Fall.
     

    Budgets

    The client agency for each project provides funding to cover estimated direct expenses plus university overhead.  Contractual arrangements are with the Cal Poly Pomona Foundation, a nonprofit corporation exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.


    Awards

    Since its inception, the 606 studio has developed numerous projects that have been recognized for professional awards by a number of professional associations.  Awards received include:

    2008 Student Award of Excellence (Analysis & Planning), presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for PUBLIC SPACE AS CATALYST FOR THE REGENERATION OF SOUTH LOS ANGELES
    Student Award of Honor (Analysis & Planning),presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for KIDS AT THE CREEK:PLANTING THE SEEDS OF STEWARDSHIP AT CHOLLAS CREEK
    2002 Royce Neuschatz Award for Historic Landscapes, presented by the Los Angeles Conservancy - for the ARROYO SECO PARKWAY LANDSCAPE PLAN
    1995 Professional Merit Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for SHAPING THE FUTURE OF OWENS LAKE
    Professional Merit Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for the SANTA YNEZ RIVER PLAN
    1992 Professional Merit Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for the ENHANCEMENT PLAN FOR THE REGIONAL RESOURCES OF NORTHWESTERN SASSARI PROVINCE
    Outstanding Environmental Resource Document Award, presented by the Association of Environmental Professionals - for A MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK FOR THE IRVINE COMPANY OPEN SPACE RESERVE
    1991 Professional Honor Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for A MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK FOR THE TIJUANA RIVER VALLEY
    1987 Professional Merit Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for the MOJAVE RIVER BASIN: DESIGN FOR DESERT WATER MANAGEMENT
    1986 Professional Honor Award, presented by the American Society of Landscape Architects - for the DESIGN FOR THE ETIWANDA/DAY CANYON AREA

    606 Studio Projects

    The 606 Studio has developed multiple projects a year since 1976.  Projects have covered a wide variety of topics for a number of federal, state, and local agencies, as well as for private non-profit and for-profit organizations. The following maps illustrate the location and extent of 606 studio planning efforts since 1976.

    606 Studio Projects Around the World
    606 Studio projects around the world, 1976-2003. Click on image to see map.

    606 Studio Projects in California and Mexico
    606 Studio projects in California and Mexico, 1976-2003. Click on image to see map.

    606 Studio Projects in the Los Angeles Region
    606 Studio projects in the Los Angeles region, 1976-2003. Click on image to see map.

    606 Project Study Areas in the Los Angeles Region
    606 Studio project study areas in the Los Angeles region, 1976-2003. Click on image to see map.

    Recent projects of the 606 Studio include:  

    Year Project
    2009 THE SANTIAGO CREEK WATERSHED: FROM PEAKS TO CREEKS
      SANTA CLARA RIVER PARKWAY PUBLIC ACCESS PLAN
      A VISION PLAN FOR THE ORMOND BEACH WETLANDS RESERVE
    2008 SIGNAL HILL NORTH SLOPE VISION PLAN
      KLAMATH RIVER COORIDOR
      THE EMERALD HORSESHOE
    2007 PUBLIC SPACE AS CATALYST FOR ATHE REGENERATION OF SOUTH LOS ANGELES for the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles
      KIDS IN THE CREEK: PLANTING THE SEEDS OF STEWARDSHIP IN CHOLLAS CREEK for Groundwork San Diego
      TRANSFORMING URBAN ENVIRONMENTS FOR A POST-PEAK OIL FUTURE: A VISION PLAN for the City of San Buenaventura
      URBAN ECOTONES: VISION PLAN FOR A HEALTHY FUTURE for California Resource Connections, Inc.
     2006 MASTER PLAN FOR R-RANCH IN THE SEQUOIAS for R-Ranch
      GREEN LINKAGES for the city of West Covina
      DEY REY LAGOON AND PARKWAY - GATEWAY OF BALLONA WATERSHED for the City of Los Angeles
      SEEING GREEN: GROUNDS FOR A RENEWED URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE, for the County of Orange
    2005 CARMEL RIVER PARKWAY VISION PLAN for The Big Sur Land Trust.
      ELKHORN CITY TRAILS PLAN for Elkhorn City Heritage Council, KY.
      HABITAT RESTORATION STUDY FOR DRY CREEK, TULARE COUNTY, CA for Sequoia Riverlands Trust.
      HAHAMONGNA PARK VISION PLAN for the City of Pasadena
     2004 PACOIMA WASH GREENWAY MASTER PLAN for the City of San Fernando, California
    LAKESIDE RIVER PARK CONCEPTUAL PLAN for the San Diego River Lakeside Conservancy
      WATERSHED DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR THE SAN DIEGO CREEK AND UPPER NEWPORT
    BAY for the County of Orange, California
     2003 CARR LAKE REGIONAL PARK for the City of Salinas, California
      LONG BEACH RIVERLINK: CONNECTING CITY TO RIVER for the San Pedro Bay Estuary Project
      TECATE RIVER PARK: A FRAMEWORK FOR AN URBAN RIVER ENVIRONMENT IN TECATE, MEXICO for the Fundacion La Puerta
    2002 SAN GABRIEL CONFLUENCE PARK: A RIVER-BASED URBAN NATURE NETWORK, for the Sierra Club
    SAN DIEGO RIVER PARK CONCEPTUAL PLAN, for the California Coastal Conservancy
    CULTURAL TOURISM PLAN FOR THE CENTRAL AVENUE CORRIDOR, Los Angeles, for the Dunbar Economic Development Corporation and the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department
    2001 UPPER BALLONA CREEK WATERSHED:  A FRAMEWORK PLAN FOR DAYLIGHTING STREAMS, for the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation, Stormwater Division
    A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY PLAN FOR PARKER FLATS, FORMER FORT ORD ARMY BASE, for Monterey County
    A TRAIL AND OUTDOOR EDUCATION PLAN, for the Santa Catalina Island Conservancy
    POSITIONING CAL POLY POMONA AS A REGENERATIVE CAMPUS:  EXPANDING THE VISION OF THE LYLE CENTER FOR REGENERATIVE STUDIES, for the John T. Lyle Center for Regenerative Studies
    REMEDIATION LANDSCAPES IN THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY
    A PROTECTION AND REVITALIZATION PLAN FOR LAS VIRGENES CREEK
    2000 SAN GABRIEL RIVER WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PLAN, for the San Gabriel Mountains Conservancy
    PARKS FOR THE NEXT GENERATION, for the County of Los Angeles
    A VISION FOR THE KERN RIVER VALLEY:  AN ECOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY, for Friends of Kern River Preserve
    ARROYO SECO PARKWAY LANDSCAPE PLAN, for Caltrans 
    1999 NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION AND OPEN SPACE PLAN for the Town of Mammoth Lakes, CA
    GRIFFITH PARK: DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR ENHANCED ACCESSIBILITY.
    1998 LINKING LEARNING TO LANDSCAPES.
    WINTEC GREEN MALL: A REGIONALLY BASED PROCESS FOR DESIGN.
    AN INTEGRATED-SYSTEMS APPROACH TO DEVELOPMENT.
    THE MALIBU CREEK WATERSHED: A framework for monitoring, enhancement, and action for Heal The Bay & California Coastal Conservancy

    How to Contact Us Regarding a Project

    If your organization has a project which you believe matches our project criteria, and would like us to get involved, email Susan Mulley, Ph.D., 606 Studio Co-Principal Investigator, for more information.