The Parking Garage at Westlake Tower
How does one balance placemaking with navigation?
In the heart of Seattle, Westlake Tower visitors were struggling to navigate the parking garage’s open layout on their way to the office, shopping center, and monorail access of the above tower.
With multiple stairwells that lead to different access points, two garage levels that looked identical, and very little direction on how to exit, a multi-faceted solution was overdue.
The first point of order was to walk the parking garage and find the “pinch points” where people were getting tripped up with navigation.
Our walk found two major areas that needed improvement: First, the existing signage was small and easily obstructed by cars and trucks, making even finding a path of travel for pedestrians an ordeal.
Second, there did not exist a system for directing pedestrians to certain location or informing them of where their paths led. Leading patrons to go up staircases they believed would lead to their destinations, only to end up in places they did not intend to go.
Our solution, then, was rather simple: Create large signage visible above car eyeline with clear, readable direction and location marking. At the same time, make each floor distinct and memorable with a fresh repaint to make things cleaner and brighter to better see in the dimness of the garage.
Today, Westlake Tower is a place where guests feel confident and safe. Their garage reviews have ceased featuring complaints about their navigability. The only problem they have left is with their pricing.