A bird's eye view of The Bloc in downtown LA.
Photo courtesy The Bloc
The old Macy's Plaza in downtown LA, designed by Charles Luckman, had a fortress-like quality. It was cut off from the street and the 7th Street/Metro Center station below it. Developer Wayne Ratkovich bought the property, re-branded it as The Bloc, and, with design by Studio One Eleven, has opened a pedestrian passageway connecting to the Metro station. Does this signify a new embrace of mass transit users by retailers in Los Angeles? Can a more urban shopping experience keep up with changes in retailing?