Blog Launch

So today marks the launch of the Urban Operations Project Blog. The purpose of this blog is to document the a residential project I am currently working on in Los Angeles from start to completion. After working with Taalman Koch Architecture on their iT House Blog, I thought it might be interesting to carry on the experiment, albeit from an even earlier perspective. While the iT House Blog focuses on the construction of the first iT House, this blog is an attempt to give transparency to the process from design to the occupancy of a project. It is my hope that by reading the entries, visitors will better understand the sometimes cloudy processes that are involved in the design and erection of a piece of residential architecture.

To kick off the first entry, I am listening to the plotter in my studio whir away at the first check set for the project. We are due to submit the final schematic package to CTW Engineers- the structural engineers on the project. It is their estimate that the package should be ready for plan-check sometime in late July. Technosoils, the Geological consultant on the project is revising their report (commissioned by the previous owner) and we should be submitting it to the Los Angeles Department of Grading for review in a couple of weeks.

Do you feel like you've missed a step?

Well, to confess the blog is not exactly starting at the VERY beginning. To explain more, I bought a piece of land last November in the LA neighborhood of Echo Park. The lot is about 8500 square feet with a slope of about 1/1 (45 degrees). Lots like this one are not uncommon in the hilly areas of Los Angeles, and looking at land like this gives most people the jitters when they think about building on them (myself included). Having had some design-build experience before with my own house, as well as the iT House with TK, I opted to try to do it again. The project is the first one for my studio Urban Operations which is my solo-practice I started after the closing of my partnership with LEVEL design studio. I've gone through several schemes over the past 10 weeks (not including late night sketches last Winter on cocktail napkins at the neighborhood bar). While working without a client may seem attractive,I've found it poses a major problem: A lack of design guidelines.

Certainly, since this project is "Spec development" it would seem easy enough, right? Make a box, then sell aforementioned box to a consumer, and bathe in the cash from the sale. However, with so much visual junk already in the LA architectural landscape, I thought it might be nice to try and make a positive contribution. It's also an attempt to "kick-start" my new office and try and attract clients who are interested in contemporary design, as well as a chance to let architecture change their lives. It's also an opportunity to continue some of the design ideas I initiated in my own house.

In any case, stay tuned over the next couple of days for a review of what's been going on with the design of the project, and what will be coming up over the next few months. For those interested in contacting the office, our Website is still in the production phase but should be up and running in July.