Creating a dramatic, elegant look for an austere, rectangular glass building, the wavy tensioned awning covering one of the buildings at the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles appears to imitate the ocean. FabriTec Structures, Costa Mesa, Calif., was called upon to create this 2002 International Achievement Award-winning awning to soften the look of the building and to draw attention to it. At 25 feet tall, it appears to easily wrap around the upper half of the building. However, the logistics of the project were anything but facile. FabriTec's client, A.F. Gilmore Co., owns the Farmers Market, which houses all manner of specialty shopping. Fresh produce, ethnic restaurants, gift shops, bookstores, restaurants and coffee shops are all part of the Farmers Market experience. The owners wanted an awning for the building that would provide a fresh, soft and more inviting look to the building while making some shade for the outdoor tables that surround it. Established in 1934 at the corner of Third and Fairfax in Los Angeles, the historic Farmers Market had its humble beginnings as a gathering of farmers displaying their fresh produce on the tailgates of their trucks. The customers loved to stroll among the trucks purchasing fruit, vegetables and flowers in the open air. It wasn't long before the Farmers Market became an institution.
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