Fans of 500 Days of Summer may recognize Angel’s Knoll, the small hillside park near Angels Flight where Tom and Summer share a memorable scene overlooking Downtown Los Angeles.
But while the spot became famous on the big screen, it’s been off-limits in real life for more than a decade. Angel’s Knoll closed in 2013 and has remained inaccessible ever since.
Now, a new design competition has given the long-shuttered park a possible new future — at least on paper.
Designers reimagined Angel’s Knoll
The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) recently asked emerging landscape architects to rethink what Angel’s Knoll could become.
The competition focused on ideas for creating a more accessible, welcoming and climate-friendly space while working with the site’s steep hillside and history.
The winning proposal, “Folding Angel’s Knoll,” was created by Yuehui Gong, Associate ASLA.
The design imagines the park evolving over several phases, with changes taking place over 20 years and beyond. It also incorporates the site’s natural landscape and creates new opportunities for people to walk through and gather.
Plus, two other designs tied for second place.
- “Action! Thermal Justice in Motion” by Zitong Huang, Yiding Han and Yuan Tian imagines Angel’s Knoll as a climate-friendly gathering space with greenery, cooling features and accessible paths.
- “SOIL HOLDS: MATTER, MEMORY, COMMONS” by Jiewen Hu, Zicheng Zhao and Zhijie Wang takes inspiration from the site’s soil, geology and history.
Two additional concepts, “Unlocking the Knoll” and “Reweaving the Hill,” received honorable mentions.
Why has Angel’s Knoll been closed?
Angel’s Knoll sits on Bunker Hill, near Angels Flight and Grand Central Market.
The property has been connected to several development plans over the years, including a proposed third tower at California Plaza and the much larger Angels Landing project.
Ultimately, none of those plans came to fruition, leaving the small hillside space fenced off and unused.
Will the park actually reopen?
Not necessarily. The ASLA competition is conceptual, so the designs aren’t approved redevelopment plans and don’t mean construction is currently scheduled.
For now, Angel’s Knoll remains closed to the public.
Still, after 13 years behind a fence, the new concepts offer an interesting glimpse at what the famous 500 Days of Summer location could look like if it ever gets another chance at becoming a public park.
