SOLANA BEACH, CA
Designed by Architect Rob Wellington Quigley
Architectural Photography by Paul Piazza
“Solana Beach Transit Center is a train station on Amtrak California’s Pacific Surfliner passenger train and on North County Transit District’s COASTER commuter rail route located in Solana Beach, California. The tracks were lowered to their current position in the late 90s, to alleviate congestion on Lomas Santa Fe Road and Downtown Solana Beach. There is enough room between the two tracks to create a third track, which could be used as a bypass track.
The station was designed by architect Rob Wellington Quigley and was built in 1994 to replace the aging depot in Del Mar, California two miles south which had been in use since the early 1900s. Funding for the station included $2.8 million from Proposition 116; an additional $3.3 million used for land acquisition and design was obtained through Transnet, a half-cent county sales tax. Quigley drew inspiration for the design from a group of Quonset huts that used to line North Cedros Avenue in the 1940s. To the basic semi-circular form of the hut, the architect added a tower reminiscent of those found on many train depots dating to the second half of the 19th century.
In the late 1990s, an $18 million project lowered the tracks and station platforms. This allowed for another track and platform and improved safety by eliminating the railroad crossing located south of the station.”
[excerpt from Wikipedia]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solana_Beach_station
“The Solana Beach mixed-use Transit Station master plan project will eventually be the new town center for this growing Southern California beach city. The design was created in a series of public workshops and includes a rail station, a large parking garage, retail and restaurant space, low-cost senior housing, artist lofts
“In a refreshing alternative to development-as-usual, the North County Transit District and the City of Solana Beach consolidated particular properties and interests into a common agenda. Even more courageously, the local residents were asked to define and “design” this politically controversial and complex project.”
“After a series of orientation workshops, the architects presented the participants with a blank piece of butcher paper. Working in small groups, the community and developers reached a creative consensus on the majority of programmatic items.”
“The groups expressed concerns about traffic, parking, and design. They wanted this project to become a new community focal point or town center. They stressed establishing a human scale and a comfortable relationship between existing commercial and residential areas. The development had to relate to the railroad tracks while mitigating noise and vibration. In addition, the design had to function with the tracks at grade as well as allow the tracks to be lowered 25′ below grade in the future. Links with Highway 101, an adjacent park, the beach, and the remaining area had to be explored sensitively. The groups also wanted to mask the presence of an 880-space parking garage. A hierarchy was proposed that placed more public retail components near a busy intersection and quiet residential uses at the north end of the project.”
“High on the community’s list of requests was a design that would be unique and particular to this beach community. The response was design imagery inspired by the World War II-era structures and greenhouse sheds still found throughout the area. The train station acknowledges the vaulted typology of its European
[excerpts from Architect Rob Wellington Quigley’s Website]
https://robquigley.com/projects/solana-beach-station/
