The Los Angeles area is blessed with universal, omnipresent sunshine. To reap the benefits of such a locale, planners have plenty of outdoor options in which to bask their attendees in the warm, inviting weather. Simply put, it wouldn’t be SoCal without a dripping sunset beaming down upon your banquet, your product launch or your rooftop team-building session with ping-pong tables. How about an urban scavenger hunt concluding on a patio terrace 15 floors up? Or a red carpet ceremony in a gated garden? It’s July, for crying out loud. Who wants to meet indoors anyway?
DOWNTOWN L.A.
Grand Park
Planners not recently familiar with downtown Los Angeles will be awestruck at various changes that have unfolded, even as recently as last year. The 12-acre Grand Park, for example, spans four city blocks. Sandwiched between Los Angeles City Hall and the Music Center, separated by two cross streets, the park can accommodate 1,000 attendees at once or numerous concurrent events across several configurations. A restored fountain, a lively garden environment, numerous terraces, plazas, a coffee shop, an interactive splash pad and several outdoor performance spaces all come into play for any potential group event. The fountain includes programmable LED lighting tailor-made for corporate events and nighttime festivities.
Lukas Rivera, director of Grand Park, says it was redesigned to accommodate high-tech events, so there is no need for generators, and technicians won’t have to look for plugs.
“The designers did an amazing job at including a great amount of power throughout the park,” Rivera says. “So that way, we could activate a stage anywhere in the space. This park can take the form of anything you put in it.”
Perch Bistro
For groups wanting to meet amid an Art Deco ambience, outdoor fire pits 15 floors high and French food, the Perch experience begins with two elevator rides. The original building rose to only 13 floors so that’s where the first elevator stops. Developer Jeffrey Fish added two more floors, so another elevator takes visitors to the main restaurant and outdoor wrap-around terrace on the 15th floor, plus a rooftop bar and patio on the 16th floor. All areas are available for groups and events. Eclectic furniture, French pop music and sweeping unobstructed views of the city highlight any outdoor group meeting. Especially on the rooftop, private parties and post-convention powwows for 130 people or private sit-down meetings with the backdrop of the fire pits are common.
“We’ve done everything from afternoon creative get-togethers for companies to weddings, daytime meetings and team building,” says Denise Ronayne, director of sales and events at the Perch. “We just had a company that did a scavenger hunt through the city of Los Angeles that ended up on our rooftop. I just love watching people as the elevator door opens, their mouth drops open when they step out there. It’s so beautiful.”PageBreak
HOLLYWOOD
Taglyan Cultural Complex
Situated just a few blocks south of Hollywood & Vine, one of the world’s most emblematic junctions, the Taglyan Cultural Complex already offers impeccable and statuesque indoor facilities, but the outdoor spaces are also quintessential Hollywood in their grandeur. Up to 600 people can congregate at tables outside in the botanical gardens for an opulent experience amid cypress and olive trees, courtyards, fountains and primo SoCal sun, softly filtered by a smattering of natural flora. A patio above the courtyard is also a common addition to any experience. Since the property is technically a private facility with parking, guests can feel like clandestine royalty while still being within walking distance of Hollywood Boulevard. Gary Taglyan, marketing director for the complex, says the outdoor areas are ideal for award-style rituals in pure Hollywood fashion.
“We do all our red carpet ceremonies out there,” he says. “We even have an in-house, 16-foot-wide by 30- to 40-foot-long red carpet. That’s the major thing, when people get here for grand entrances, from the valet all the way through the front door. Our outdoor area is a beautiful space for those kind of events. We can do up to a 40-foot-long step and repeat.”
The Standard
At the Standard in Hollywood, up to 400 people can join together on blue Astroturf and hear the band. That’s right: Hundreds can congregate outdoors, taking advantage of the iconic views of the Standard’s pool deck. Cocktail service, grand-scale panoramas of the Sunset Strip and even ping-pong can be integrated into any possible outdoor event. Palm trees, city lights and all the highlights of Hollywood unfold as the backdrop for any group affair. The adjacent Cactus Lounge, an indoor facility, flows out into the pool deck, so 400 patrons can listen to music from the outside. PageBreak
THE VALLEYS
The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens
The designation of “outdoor event space” barely sums up the world-renowned offerings of the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino near Pasadena. From the grandiose pomp and circumstance of the Breeder’s Cup to intimate business get-togethers, the wide expanses of the property are ideal for outdoor events. Just the plaza at the main entrance near the The Munger Research Center Plaza can function as a lively dinner space. Additional areas exist adjacent to galleries and outside in various gardens. Julie Gaeta, assistant director of foundation and corporate relations at the venue, says the Huntington boasts numerous event possibilities.
“We have 12 themed gardens,” Gaeta says. “Within each of those spaces, you can create an event that has a real distinct flavor. For example, in the desert garden, we recently had a tequila tasting where we highlighted the agave collection.”
Sportsmen’s Lodge
One of the San Fernando Valley’s most celebrated historic institutions, a former trout farm and fishermen’s accommodation turned stomping ground for Bogie, John Wayne and Lauren Bacall, the Sportsmen’s Lodge offers garden areas and decks for a myriad corporate events. Every outdoor space spotlights and incorporates the splendor of the San Fernando Valley, and the entire facility transplants groups into the golden eras—and pre-golden eras—of the film business. Legions of celebrities have staged their own business meetings at the property. Studio City and the film industry itself essentially grew up around Sportsmen’s Lodge, one of the oldest landmark hotels in Los Angeles. Weddings take place all year long, as do numerous corporate events.
Descanso Gardens
At Descanso Gardens in the municipality of La Canada Flintridge, a total expanse of 160 acres accommodates a multiplicity of configurations, from intimate board retreats to grand-scale corporate affairs. The property features both eastern and western environments. Up to 60 can take advantage of the Japanese garden, for instance, which includes a teahouse and a koi pond. Those requiring a pavilion for a 185-seat nosh-up surrounded by 4,000 rose bushes have just such a configuration at their disposal. Historic and Craftsman-style facilities, as well as additional gardens, are also available. The property is popular for photo shoots and film events, due to the pristine natural surroundings.
Gary Singh has absorbed, integrated and transmitted his Los Angeles experiences for numerous trade and consumer magazines.
