Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Aug 9, 2026

C. W. Kim

Chong Won Kim, better known as C. W. Kim, is a Korean-American architect and urban planner based in San Diego. He trained in Washington state before moving to San Diego where he worked for the Hope Consulting Group, later opening his own firm. Kim's designs include San Diego's First National Bank Building, the Hotel Intercontinental, the master plan for the San Diego Convention Center district, and the Emerald Plaza. Kim was also an assistant professor at the city's NewSchool of Architecture and served on the board of United Way and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.

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C. W. Kim
Kim in the 1990s
Born
Chong Wan Kim

(1938-08-06) August 6, 1938
Namwon, Japanese-occupied Korea
Alma materUniversity of Washington, UC Berkeley
OccupationArchitect
Spouse
Dong Jin "Jean" Kim
​
(m. 1966)​
12
PracticeBennett, Johnson, Slenes and Smith, Sasaki & Walker, Frank L. Hope & Associates, C. W. Kim, AIA Architects & Planners, Inc.
BuildingsFirst National Bank Building, Marriot Marquis, Emerald Plaza

Chong Wan Kim (born August 6, 1938), better known as C. W. Kim, is a Korean-American architect and urban planner based in San Diego. He trained in Washington state before moving to San Diego where he worked for the Hope Consulting Group, later opening his own firm. Kim's designs include San Diego's First National Bank Building, the Hotel Intercontinental, the master plan for the San Diego Convention Center district, and the Emerald Plaza. Kim was also an assistant professor at the city's NewSchool of Architecture and served on the board of United Way and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.

Emerald Plaza with its structure resembling a cluster of emerald crystals source ↗

Early life and education

Kim was born on August 6, 1938, in Namwon in North Jeolla Province in Japanese-occupied Korea.3 He was born during a period when Japan had annexed Korea and conscripted its resources for World War II. Kim was separated from his father and siblings during the Korean War.3 Kim won prizes in district school painting competitions, and with encouragement from his teachers and oldest brother, Kim set his sights on a career in architecture when he was 14.2

Kim followed his oldest brother to the United States32 to attend the University of Washington.34 He obtained a bachelor's degree in architecture from the university in 1965.32 He later won a Mellon Fellowship to study at the University of California, Berkeley,15 where he obtained a double master's degree in architecture and city planning.3625

Career

Kim worked as a draftsman in Washington state until 1971, when he became an associate at Bennett, Johnson, Slenes and Smith.4 He later worked at a number of San Francisco firms,2 including Sasaki & Walker and Goets, Hellenbeck & Goets.1

In 1978, Kim moved to San Diego where he could have more impact, particularly on the city's skyline.2 He joined San Diego's oldest and largest firm, the Hope Consulting Group, which had been founded by Frank L. Hope.67 With this firm, Kim traveled to Saudi Arabia to design a variety of schools and commercial projects.5 In 1980, he began working on the San Diego skyline as Hope's director of design for the First National Bank Building5 (now 1 Columbia Place) and the Hotel Intercontinental68 (now Marriott Marquis). He also produced the master plan for the San Diego Convention Center.5 Kim was promoted to senior vice-president and head director of Hope in 1983.21

San Diego Marriott Marquis hotel, First Tower source ↗

In 1984,8 Kim opened his own firm, C. W. Kim, AIA Architects & Planners, Inc.89 There he worked on commercial and residential projects in San Diego, as well as nationally and internationally, including in Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Central America.52

Kim designed several San Diego buildings,5 including the Emerald Plaza,1011 with its structure resembling a cluster of emerald crystals.9 Kim designed the Scripps Clinic and La Jolla Research Laboratory,5 San Diego's First National Bank Building,21 the Hotel Intercontinental,2 the master plan for the San Diego Convention Center district,5 the 100-acre Daley Center,2 the Loews Coronado Bay Resort,1213 the Sun Dial House,14 and the Spinnaker Building.5

Kim was an assistant professor at San Diego's NewSchool of Architecture2153 and served on the board of the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art and the United Way.3

Designs and planning

Some of Kim's notable projects and designs include:

  • 1982: First National Bank Building, San Diego (now known as 1 Columbia Place).5 The building was Kim's first big downtown project. It departed from existing high-rise designs, which were box-shaped and zoned for single-use office space. To integrate the high-rise with the surrounding neighborhood, Kim used a series of landscaped terraces.16 A design for a structure linking the building to San Diego Convention Center never materialized after the site for the latter was moved.2
  • 1984: San Diego Marina District and Intercontinental Hotel (now known as Marriott Marquis). This project was the master plan for the 150-acre harborside site for the San Diego Convention Center,5a the Hotel Intercontinental, and its marina.568 Kim won a national competition with the design theme, "Pacific Gateway",17 which included matching marquis-shaped towers appearing as a gateway on the harbor to the city beyond. The first tower was built as Kim conceived it. However, the developer used a different firm and design for the second tower.718
  • 1988–1993: Emerald Center, San Diego (now known as Emerald Plaza). The mixed-use building10 resembles a cluster of emerald crystals.9 Kim planned and designed the complex.192021 Although the complex appears from afar to be 8 separate towers, the unique hexagonal design consists of two buildings joined by two 8-story glass atriums.6
  • 1989–1991: Loews Coronado Bay Resort, Coronado, CA.14 Kim designed this mixed-use resort, convention center, and marina to blend with the surrounding low-rise neighborhood,1213 and function as a community connected by a nautilus design.21 He also designed the expansion in 2000.5
  • 1996–2000: SKC International Headquarters and ABC Project, Covington, Georgia.5 Kim was the designer and project architect for the SK Group's manufacturing subsidiary in Georgia. The plan combined 39 hectares of industrial space and 380 acres of wooded land, with the buildings designed to be built in six phases. The first building, the subsidiary's office headquarters, was completed in the first phase of Kim's commission.2223

Some of Kim's other projects covered in publications include the following (with single years indicating the date of commencement and asterisks indicating projects not completed to date):

  • 1978–1979: School of Logistic and Transportation, Taif, Saudi Arabia.5
  • 1980: Scripps Clinic and Research Laboratory, La Jolla, CA.5
  • 1981: Mercy Hospital Expansion, San Diego, CA.5
  • 1985–1989: Daley Center, San Diego, CA.224
  • 1990–1993: The Sun Dial House, La Jolla, CA.1421
  • 1995: Wal-Chool Mountain National Park Resort, South Korea.*525
  • 1995–2002: Whang's OB-GYN Private Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.525
  • 2000: The Spinnaker Building, San Diego, CA.*35
  • 2001: The Pacific Trade Center, Los Angeles, CA.*62
  • 2004–2010: Oceanside Hotel, Oceanside, CA.26

Honors

Kim has won numerous honors including a Building Owner's & Manager's Association Honor in 199319 and being named One of GoldSea's 100 Most Inspiring Asian Americans of All Time.3

Personal life

In 1966, C. W. Kim married Dong Jin Kim.3 In addition to architecture, Kim pursues oil painting, sculpture, and furniture design.227

Notes

Notes

  1. The master planned area was originally named the Embarcadero but is now designated as the Marina district. Many substantial structures were subsequently constructed on Kim's master planned area, including the 1 million square foot San Diego Convention Center, two 600-room Hyatt Hotel buildings, and a 1300-room Hilton Hotel. See Marina, San Diego
References

References

  1. "Personalities: C. W. Kim (pg 2 of 2)". Goldsea magazine. Archived from the original on April 24, 2026. Retrieved April 16, 2026.
  2. Omundson, Paul (April 21, 1986). "Korean Heritage Influences Architect's Work". Los Angeles Times. pp. Entertainment & Arts. Archived from the original on April 25, 2026. Retrieved April 7, 2026.
  3. "Personalities: C. W. Kim (pg 1 of 1)". Goldsea magazine. Archived from the original on March 7, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2013.
  4. "Architectural Firm Adds Two New Partners". The Olympian. Olympia, Washington. January 3, 1971. pp. B4. Archived from the original on April 11, 2026. Retrieved April 7, 2026 – via newspapers.com. Two new partners... have been added to the architectural firm of Bennett and Johnson.... Named as associates were David E. Falter, Franklin J. Densmore and Chong Wan Kim.... Chong Wan Kim is a graduate of the University of Washington.
  5. Biberman, Thor Kamban (November 13, 2000). "Kim's Influence Seen in San Diego's Skyline". San Diego Daily Transcript. Vol. 111, no. 226. pp. A1, A10.
  6. Novarro, Leonard (September 1993). "Nature's Way: With Ideas Borrowed from the Great Outdoors, A Korean-Born Architect is Transforming the Face of San Diego". Asia, Inc. p. 72.
  7. Kaiser, Kay (February 10, 1985). "The Hotel Tower's Ungraceful Twin". The San Diego Union. pp. F1. Retrieved April 14, 2026. The developer and his original architect, Frank Hope, were also pulled apart by a rift no one will clearly describe....It's no surprise that the most distraught man in San Diego is C.W. Kim, the architect who first conceived of the elliptical towers. He worked for a year and a half on the project while he was director of design for the Hope firm.
  8. Spaulding, Richard (April 19, 1991). "Emerald City – Architect's Art, Builder's Dream Redefine Skyline". San Diego Tribune. pp. F1. Retrieved April 14, 2026. At just 52, not many architects have defined their city's skyline as much as C.W. Kim has stamped San Diego's, especially with the architect's third project, the green-glass, eye-catching Emerald-Shapery Center... The first major building Kim was credited with was Columbia Centre, now First National Bank Building... Kim's second design project while at Hope was the first tower in what was originally the Intercontinental Hotel. It is now a two-tower Marriott.
  9. "Ground Breaking Slated Emerald-Shapery Center". Los Angeles Times. August 16, 1987. Archived from the original on April 10, 2026. Retrieved April 6, 2026. San Diego will have what may become its signature building in the shape of a cluster of hexagonal prisms.
  10. "San Diego: An "Emerald City" for a Growing Skyline: Eight Green Towers in a Hotel-Office Center". The New York Times. May 15, 1988.
  11. Roskos-Ewoldsen, B.; Intons-Peterson, M. J.; Anderson, R. E. (May 28, 1993). Imagery, Creativity, and Discovery: A Cognitive Perspective. Elsevier. p. 307. ISBN 978-0-08-086752-6. Figure 3 shows a dramatic new building in San Diego, the Emerald-Shapery Center. Developer Sandor Shapery... began to study crystals and noticed that many crystals have a hexagonal structure. The final design, by architect C. W. Kim, consisted of eight six-sided spires combined in clusters to form the towers.
  12. Lawrence, Herb (February 22, 1991). "A Crown Jewel". San Diego Tribune. pp. F1. Retrieved April 14, 2026. The design of Loews Coronado Bay calls for many rooms with private terraces to highlight the views of the bay. There also will be 25,000 square feet of meeting space including two ballrooms, a 5,000-square-foot health club and five tennis courts. The complex also will have a 97-slip marina.... Local architect C.W. Kim said he designed the resort "to also be pleasant to look at in addition to having good views from it." He said he tried to keep the mass of the project lower-level with no building being higher than three stories.
  13. Rider, Alan (September 29, 1991). "Loews' Crowning Touches: Resort developers aim to please Coronado neighbors". The San Diego Union. pp. F1. Retrieved April 14, 2026. San Diego architect C.W. Kim said he made blending the hotel's configuration with neighborhood homes a high priority.... Kim used several tactics to create a less imposing project.... Minimizing the project's obstructiveness was only part of the challenge for Kim, whose other notable additions to the San Diego's skyline include the hexagonal towers of downtown's Emerald-Shapery Center and the master plan for the curved towers of Marriott's hotel on San Diego Bay.
  14. Rice, Dave (April 12, 2018). "C.W. Kim's Sundial House". The San Diego Reader. Archived from the original on April 8, 2026. Retrieved April 7, 2026. The property was designed as the personal residence for "world-renowned" local architect Chong Wan "C.W." Kim, whose other local projects have included Loews Coronado Bay Resort, downtown's Emerald Plaza, and the final expansion of the... SDCCU Stadium in Mission Valley....
  15. "On the Move: Kim Joins NSA". San Diego Daily Transcript. May 8, 1983. pp. 3C. C.W. Kim, senior vice president and director of design and planning at the Hope Consulting Group has accepted an invitation to join the faculty of the New School of Architecture (NSA), here as an instructor of architectural design... [San Diego] was the eighth largest city without one prior to the establishment of NSA two years ago.
  16. Parry, Bill (June 8, 1980). "$70 Million Office Building: Skyline Will Soon Soar to New Heights". The San Diego Union. pp. F1, F12–F13. Retrieved April 9, 2026. Columbia Centre, with its landscaped terraces and gradient designs, will look down on all of them at 27 stories. And the architects say it will complement its surrounding: The proposed convention center across the street, Paul Thoryk's Columbia Square and the proposed hotels that will stand along the bayfront.
  17. Parry, Bill (February 15, 1981). "Twin Towers: 'The Pacific Gateway': Sailing High above the City". The San Diego Union. pp. F1, F9. Retrieved April 9, 2026. People working on the project call the plan such things as dramatic, world-class and simple elegance.... However, architect C.W. Kim came up with the most appropriate term: "boats." "The twin towers will look like two boats sailing across the bay," said Kim, director of design and planning. "This is appropriate because the theme of the project is 'San Diego, the Pacific Gateway.'
  18. Kaiser, Kay (January 20, 1985). "C.W. Kim and His Designs on the City". The San Diego Union. pp. F1. Retrieved April 15, 2026. Kim, the former director of design for the internationally known Hope Consulting Group.... his students at Chula Vista's New School of Architecture.... My designs are like my babies.... Hotel Inter-Continental, which opened last year, was designed as a pair of hull-shaped towers... The award-winning designer, C.W. Kim, completed the design of the first tower but the second tower will be slightly different
  19. Showley, Roger M. (September 19, 1993). "Local Office Buildings Win Awards". The San Diego Union. pp. H-27. Retrieved April 9, 2026. Eight office buildings, ranging from downtown skyscrapers to a suburban office park, won top honors this week in the fifth annual office building of the year awards sponsored by the local Building Owners and Managers Association....The winners were:... 250,000–500,000 square feet: Emerald-Shapery Center, 402 W. Broadway, downtown, a 375,400-square-foot, 30-story tower designed by C.W. Kim & Associates
  20. Jarmusch, Ann (September 26, 1990). "His Dream Crystallizes – Six sides of Shapery worth exploring". San Diego Tribune. pp. C1. Retrieved April 9, 2026. The developer calls it 'some kind of jewel.' The architect calls it "playful and musical." Even more than these things, it is hexagonal. It is the new Emerald-Shapery Center, a cluster of crystalline towers rising from a full city block... 'The hexagon is a very strong natural form, a beautiful form,' says San Diego architect C.W. Kim, who is responsible for the project's intricate detailing as well as its overall design.
  21. "Three Foreign Architectures of Jong-Wan Kim". Architectural Culture. South Korea. September 1993. pp. 148–161. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  22. Norton, Ross (October 24, 1996). "SKC Construction Under Way". The Covington News. pp. 1, 3A.
  23. Mills, Tamela S. (October 30, 1999). "A Korean Success Story in Covington". The Covington News.
  24. "Special Issue: Korean Architects In The United States: Chong Wan Kim". Magazine for Architectural Culture. 57 (86–02). South Korea: 10–11, 28–33. February 1986. Archived from the original on April 18, 2026. Retrieved April 15, 2026.
  25. "East, West, South & North: Kim Jong-wan Architecture". Architectural Culture. 169 (1995–06). South Korea: 256–265. June 1995.
  26. "Oceanside City Council approves Holiday Inn overlooking harbor". The San Diego Union-Tribune. July 21, 2005. pp. NC-3. Retrieved April 9, 2026.
  27. Nissen, Luann; Faulkner, Ray; Faulkner, Sarah (January 2, 1994). Inside Today's Home (6th ed.). Wadsworth Publishing Co Inc. ISBN 978-0-03-055492-6.
External links