This is just a little piece of the Los Angeles neighborhood of Playa Vista. This lovely space lines a park that is the center of a small commercial/residential mixed-use neighborhood surrounded by medium density multi-family and single family homes. What I like about this space is the double rows of trees, the decomposed granite path, the movable table and chairs, and the proximity to a coffee shop, market, and yogurt store. There are often families with young children playing at the park or just sitting in the grass enjoying the typically beautiful weather. The day I took these photos I spotted a group of people stepping off distances and taking pictures and I guessed correctly that they were planners who had come to see the place for themselves. They had come all the way from Australia to tour this and other similar developments across the United States. This space definitely has appeal. It's small, simple, and a quiet refuge from the traffic and less than attractive built environment just a couple blocks away. It's a place we make a point of stopping for coffee and sitting for a few minutes or walking through the neighborhood whenever we are in the area. For the folks who live here as well as people like me who like to stop buy for a coffee and a brief visit this neighborhood is a place worth caring about.
Related: This post from Better Cities - Walkable is good, "sit-able" is better - suggests that sit-ability is as important an urban concept as walk ability.
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