Saiful Bouquet is providing structural engineering services for LA Live in Downtown Los Angeles. The hotel is 37 stories tall (about 430’-0” from grade to top of parapet) with three below-grade levels and will be constructed using cast-in-place concrete, with two core walls as the primary lateral force resisting system. The concrete wall system provides resistance to wind and seismic loads, with basement walls provided to resist soil loading. The tower will be supported on mat foundation.
The gravity system for the typical guestroom floor levels will be post-tensioned flat slabs supported by cast-in-place concrete columns and cast-in-place concrete core walls. The tower also consists of mildly-reinforced concrete flat slabs at the below-grade and first few elevated levels.
Seismic analysis and design of the hotel tower will be conducted using a performance-based approach with peer review, since the code-based, prescriptive height limit (240 feet) is being exceeded. Wind forces will be checked using appropriate, code-based loads determined using a wind tunnel study.
