About
Invitation The Balboa Park Centennial Gateway Competition is an ideas competition open to all professionals, non-professionals, and students from the design community. We invite designers to submit their ideas for consideration and public benefit.
Background 2015 marks the centennial anniversary of the Panama California Exposition. Developed to coincide with the opening of the Panama Canal, the Exposition was planned to promote San Diego, then a town of 70,000, as a viable port for commercial traffic from the Canal. The Park was the centerpiece of the exposition and a catalyst for San Diego’s growth and development. It gave the City many landmarks including the California State and Park Administration Buildings (now the Museum of Man); the California Tower; the Botanical Building; the Spreckel’s Organ Pavilion; the Plaza de Panama; and the Cabrillo Bridge, the historic gateway to the park. The world famous San Diego Zoo was also established at this time to house animals from the Exposition.
The Park experienced a second period of growth and historic significance with the 1935 California Pacific Exposition, which saw the construction of major buildings such as the Old Globe Theatre, the International Cottages, and the Spanish Village. During both World Wars, the US Navy used the park as an extension of the Naval Hospital.
With the 2015 anniversary approaching, there has been much discussion about the Centennial’s legacy; much debate on vehicular access and parking and whether or not to remove vehicles from the Plaza de Panama; and the appropriate use of Cabrillo Bridge, the Park’s historic, ceremonial entry.
Visit Balboa Park Centennial Gateway Competition website for registration, schedule, and details regarding submission requirements. Contact info@balboaparkcompetition.com for questions.
