Mission Plaza Concept Plan

San Luis Obispo’s most cherished and beloved civic space – Mission Plaza Downtown Plaza – was in dire need of renovation to address a number of issues, including an increasing demand for special events, ongoing maintenance and infrastructure deterioration, and safety due to its popularity as a hang-out for a growing transient population. The City retained RRM Design Group to reimagine Mission Plaza in conjunction with the larger Downtown Concept Planning process. After a robust and exhaustive outreach program, the final design features multiple gathering areas for large and small events, a stage, a new café intended to activate an underutilized part of the plaza, and an interactive sculpture garden that engages with the Museum of Art that shares the site. Inspired by the creek that runs adjacent, the primary forms of the plaza are a series of concentric circles reminiscent of water droplets – a subtle acknowledgment of the site’s place intersecting urban development and nature.