Barton Myers Associates' design for the UCLA Northwest Campus Commons, provides dining for 540 people, together with a 6,400-sf Assembly Room. The Commons complements BMA's housing components form a nucleus of residential, academic and recreational life for the students in the Northwest Campus. Both Commons and housing double, during the summer months, as an integrated conference facility serving both private and academic conferences.

While the Northwest Campus housing blocks are secured within controlled entry point, the Commons is open and public in nature. Its entry serves as a hinge between the private residential zone and the more public functions of the Commons, and the adjoining Office of Residential Life and Auditorium. An open plaza links the public buildings of the new complex and serves as a vehicular drop-off. For special occasions, the plaza may be closed to traffic to become a large outdoor gathering place for student functions.