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The 2026 Design Awards Event

A view from above of a circular, multi-level courtyard with ornate railings, white columns, red tile floors, and a central fountain surrounded by greenery. Spiral staircases connect the different levels.We're celebrating 24 award winning projects, as well as the Trustee's Awards for Excellence and four President's Awards at the Mission Inn in downtown Riverside. This special celebration is followed by a ticketed reception with food and drinks. Purchase your tickets before they sell out!

Balboa Park Botanical Building

Project Lead:  Jim Summers, Principal, EC Constructors, Inc., Lakeside
Client:  Edgar Lozano, City of San Diego, San Diego
Lead Architect, Engineer, or Designer:  Sandra Gramley, Platt/Whitelaw Architects, Inc., San Diego

Project Affiliates:

  • Project Architect: Sandra Gramley, Platt/Whitelaw Architects, Inc., San Diego
  • Architect/Landscape: Vicki Estrada, Estrada Land Planning, San Diego
  • Historic Architect: Milford Wayne Donaldson, Architect Milford Wayne Donaldson, FAIA, Fair Oaks
  • Civil Engineer: Pedro Arias, Michael Baker International Inc., San Diego
  • Structural Engineer/Framing: Anthony Court, AB Court & Associates, San Diego
  • Structural Engineer/Steel: Peter Maloney, Degenkolb, San Diego
  • MEP Engineer: Gary Kraut, Turpin & Rattan Engineering Inc., La Mesa
  • Horticulturist: Nan Sterman, Waterwise Gardener, Encinitas
  • Fire/Life Safety: Garner Palenski, WJE, San Diego
  • Specialty Contractor/Historic Windows & Doors Justin Warren, Spectra, Pomona
  • Client/City of San Diego Edgar Lozano, City of San Diego, San Diego
  • Client/Forever Balboa Park Jackie Higgins, Forever Balboa Park, San Diego
  • Architect: Raul Diaz, RNT, San Diego

Balboa Park Botanical Building

Balboa Park Botanical Building is a winner for the 2025 Preservation Design Award for Preservation or Restoration. Award recipients are selected by a jury of top professionals in the fields of architecture, engineering, planning, and history, as well as renowned architecture critics and journalists. Tickets and sponsorship options are available at californiapreservation.org/programs/awards/.

About Balboa Park Botanical Building

The Botanical Building, first constructed in 1915 as part of the Panama California Exposition, deteriorated from years of water damage and exposure. Previous attempts at repair did not retain the historic character of the building. This structure is a widely beloved and key component of a Historic Place: Balboa Park. As part of the National Register, work on the Botanical Building must meet the Secretary of Interior Standards.

The project was completed through design-build, with the client and project team working closely together. 

With careful attention to detail, the team restored the structure to its original design, which once again includes an arcade with historically accurate windows and restoration of the east and west facades to their original appearance.

The team also repaired the steel frame and restored the redwood lath framing and trim, as well as refurbished a 2,000-pound copper steeple and dome cupola from 1915.

Read more about the Preservation Design Awards
A large historic building with arched windows and doors, a domed roof, and a long, lattice-style structure; surrounded by green grass, palm trees, and clear blue sky.
A sunlit botanical conservatory with a tall arched ceiling, wooden lattice walls, a central fountain, benches, and various green plants and colorful foliage in raised garden beds.
A large historic conservatory with a domed roof and arched windows stands behind a pond with lilies, surrounded by palm trees and green lawns under a clear blue sky. People walk along the pathways in front.
A large indoor botanical garden with tropical plants and trees, housed under a high arched wooden and glass ceiling with warm lighting, creating a lush, natural atmosphere. Pathways lead through landscaped plant beds.
A large domed conservatory building lit with purple and blue lights at dusk, reflecting in a calm pond in front, with trees and a clear sky in the background.
Ornate glass and wood conservatory building illuminated with blue and purple lights at dusk, surrounded by palm trees and landscaped lawn.
A large, ornate indoor botanical garden with a tall, arched wooden lattice ceiling, lush green plants, and dramatic lighting highlighting the structure and foliage.
A large glass and metal conservatory houses a lush indoor garden with tropical plants, arched windows, and a central walkway beneath a curved, sunlit canopy.
A large glass and wood conservatory with a central white fountain surrounded by lush green plants, arched windows, and sunlight streaming through the curved roof structure.
A sunlit indoor garden with tropical plants and trees, bordered by rocks, in front of large arched windows with white panes and a wooden structure.
A large, sunlit conservatory features lush tropical plants, ferns, and palm trees beneath a high, arched wooden lattice roof, with pathways and benches along the greenery.
A sunlit botanical conservatory with an arched, latticed wooden roof and walls. There are lush plants and flowers in central beds, with pathways around them and large arched windows letting in natural light.
A large, arched greenhouse with a wooden lattice structure and glass ceiling, filled with various green plants and sunlight streaming through the slats.
A large glass-domed botanical building with arched windows is illuminated by purple lights at sunset, reflected in a pond with palm trees in the foreground.
A large domed building with arched windows and intricate latticework is illuminated at dusk. Palm trees surround the structure, and a reflecting pool sits nearby, with a few people walking in the foreground.
A large domed botanical building with arched windows, surrounded by palm trees, is reflected in a rectangular pond at sunset, with a clear purple and blue sky above.

Community Importance

Balboa Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is widely recognized as the cultural center of San Diego. One of the park’s most iconic structures is the Botanical Building.

The project team operated with a sense of responsibility to restore the structure and gardens to the original 1915 design and retain the public trust that’s essential for the caretaking of such a cherished place.

With its bucolic lily pond connection to Balboa Park’s El Prado paseo, the Botanical Building is also an aesthetically important part of the park’s most iconic pedestrian experience and thoroughfare. It is a treasured landmark and part of the greater Balboa Park cultural and recreational environment.

The Botanical Building is one of San Diego’s most recognizable buildings and most serene spaces. It is loved by San Diego citizens and visitors from around the world. Because the exhibits and gardens are open to the public without a fee, many generations have come to feel a sense of nostalgia, adoration, and ownership of the structure and its botanical plant displays.

Similarly adored is the 100+ year-old Morton Bay Fig tree that stands just outside the northeast corner of the Botanical Building. It provides shade for picnickers and a connection between the Botanical Building grounds and the greater, master-planned landscape of Balboa Park. The project team adapted the design and construction methods to save this tree and accommodate its roots – some of which had grown into the building.

About CPF and the Awards

Held in conjunction with CPF’s 2026 Annual Conference in Riverside, the 2026 Mission Inn Preservation Design Awards Ceremony and Reception will spotlight excellence in historic preservation in a setting that reflects the very spirit of the work being honored. This special evening brings together award recipients, conference participants, preservation leaders, and supporters from across California to celebrate outstanding preservation projects and leadership through the Preservation Design Awards and President’s Awards.

Founded in 1978, the California Preservation Foundation (CPF) is California’s statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection of historic places and cultural heritage. Through education, advocacy, and community-centered programs, CPF supports the people, projects, and policies that keep California’s historic resources vital and valued. We now support a national network of more than 36,000 members and supporters. Click here to learn how you can become a member.