architecture blog

Modative has been featured in a couple of recent articles: one in the Los Angeles Business Journal and another in Architect Magazine. Yay us! Check them out below. 

Published February 23, the Los Angeles Business Journal's cover story, "Tight Market", looks at the design challenges of small lot homes. (To learn more about the Small Lot Subdivision ordinance, download our handy guide and information packet.)

Modative featured in Los Angeles Business Journal cover story titled "Tight Market".

Christian Návar in front of the Fay 3x Homes, designed and built by Modative. Fay 2x Homes and Fay Phase III are visible in the background.

Posted February 1 to Architect Magazine's website, an article titled "Time Management" looks at the techniques managers employ to stay organized. Christian Návar, principal and co-founder of Modative, speaks about the processes in place at Modative to encourage employees to work efficiently. 

Exerpt of Architect Magazine article titled "Time Management", for which Modative was interviewed.

During a recent trip to City Hall, I stumbled upon pLAnning, the quarterly newsletter of the LA City Planning Department. In this edition, Simon Pastucha, a City Planner with the Urban Design Studio, presents the City’s newly-issued Citywide Design Guidelines and Small Lot Design Guidelines. Both of the images included in the article are of Modative projects: The Cullen Street Art District Homes + Artis @ Echo Park!  

Modative contributed project images and participated in review sessions for the creation of the Small Lot Design Guidelines. In fact, both Cullen and Artis were featured on the cover. We are proud that two of our projects have been selected by the Urban Design Studio as being representative of thoughtfully-designed projects that contribute to the urban fabric of Los Angeles.

Cullen on the front page of the newsletter 

Artis on the back page of the newsletter 

Modative has created our own Small Lot Subdivision Guide, a "how-to" for developers interested in Small Lot Subdivision. Check it out and contact us with any questions.

In our last post on the Roberts Avenue Residence, we took you through the schematic design process -- at least how our office goes about it.  If you remember, the client picked Scheme A, which consisted of a series of shifting bedroom boxes on the ground floor, visibly and audibly sheltered from the neighboring park. The living level and guest bedroom were located on the upper floor, taking full advantage of the views over the park and beyond to Baldwin Hills.

To refresh your memory, here’s an image of Scheme A during Schematic Design. 

You will see that the driving concept remains in the final design: quiet, spa-like spaces on the ground floor and open, airy spaces on the second floor. Although, there have been some adjustments. For instance, the guest bedroom and the master bedroom swapped locations. The client felt that the master bedroom, with it’s own private balcony on the second floor, would better benefit from the views. The bedroom volumes also shifted to alleviate the need for excessive steel structure to support unnecessary cantilevers. 

First Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan

Rendering

Rendering 

We have submitted for permits and are now waiting to receive comments back from the City. Once that happens, and we make the necessary corrections, bidding begins. Construction is expected to start by January 2012. Look for more updates to come with photos of the construction process.  

But, before we part, this is the perfect time to introduce our next project. As many of you know, a happy client on one project can lead to a happy repeat client on a new project. Our client on the Roberts Avenue Residence recently purchased a property on Fay Avenue -- a mere 0.2 miles from our office -- on which he wants to build 4 small-lot homes. This property is in Los Angeles, so it can take advantage of Los Angeles’s Small Lot Subdivision Ordinance. I know! What a great fit for Modative! (If you’re not familiar with the Small Lot Subdivision Ordinance in Los Angeles, click on the link and read up! It’s pretty cool (and, really, my only hope for brand-new home ownership in LA.) 

Fay Triangle Site Plan

Photo of Fay Triangle site taken from adjacent building

We are excited about this new project for two main reasons. First, we have been eyeing this triangle-shaped property for the entire five years our office has been in the area, long before it was even up for sale. (I was hoping it would somehow be left to me in someone’s will, but that would have been highly unlikely.) Second, this property is only four properties down from our Fay 2x Homes project. To have so many projects located within a mile radius of one another (in our own neighborhood, nonetheless!) has been really special. We have the rare opportunity to inject this area with thoughtful, modern design. (Check out our other projects in the area: Cullen St. Homes, Fay 2x Homes, Roberts Avenue Residence, Venice Urban Dwellings.) Stay tuned for updates on this new project we’re calling Fay Triangle. 

Map of Modative projects in our neighborhood

Post by Krystal Návar. Contributors to this post include Christian Návar, Derek Leavitt and Michael Scott .

So, is now a good time to start a building project? While it is a scary time, there are opportunities abound for those that have the courage and means. I am no fortune teller, but I can dish out a bit of what I've heard and experienced in the last few months. Of course I'll also throw in some invaluable gut intuition.

The Bad

• Banks - Lending is tight. Really tight. As a banker recently told me, "our current appetite for lending is small." He went on to say that the easiest type of loan to get these days is for an owner occupied building. That is their way of saying if you're building it for yourself to occupy (a home, remodel or commercial building) and you qualify, you may have some of their money.
• Uncertainty - The development attitude in the recent boom was build it and they will come. This is not the case anymore. You have to be careful what you build, for whom, and at what cost.

The Good

• Cheap Land - The price of land seems to be back to where it needs to be to make development projects work again. People assumed that the ever escalating price of new homes and condos was all developer greed. It was not. High land prices and construction costs dictated high sales prices.
• Foreclosures - OK, foreclosures are bad. Someone loses, banks fail. This is one of the main reasons we got into this mess, right? I get it. Now for the bright side. Foreclosures can be opportunities. The cheap real estate they offer allows for new opportunities - a quick condo flip, land for your new home, the chance to develop a small project, etc.
• Cheaper Construction - The price of materials and labor have fallen due to demand reductions. Almost all material prices have been in decline since the summer of '08. Contractors are hurting. Less work for them means they will take on projects for smaller overhead and profit percentages. Quality contractors are also taking on smaller jobs that they wouldn't touch a few years back.
• Cheaper Soft Costs - It pains me as I write this, but the bad market has also lowered the costs of architects, engineers and all the other people that get you to the point of construction and beyond. Why? They are also hurting.
  
• Faster Permitting - We do a fair amount of architecture work in Los Angeles, and the difference at City Hall these days is astounding. What used to be a four hour wait to submit for plan check is now a four minute wait. In our experience, their processing times are much faster as well.
• Time - Time is the typically bane of the architect and owner's existence. Building projects take time. They have to be designed, coordinated with consultants, documented and permitted. All this adds up to a long process that can be quite burdensome. Now, however, this time factor can help with some of our major negatives. Banks will start lending again. The market will recover. So when you think of a building project, think about the time involved. Many projects take about a year to get to permit/construction start (when you need that construction loan), then the construction can take another year (when you move in or need those prospective buyers.) So ask yourself where you think things will be in one to two years.
• Emerging Trends - Major slowdowns are often times of reflection and change. This is very true in the building biz. Of late, I've seen a strong desire for smaller, more efficient, green buildings. This trend comes both from awareness of climate change and our financial need to do more with less. I like this trend and think that it'll bring about some very innovative and evolved projects.

Do you have any thoughts on this? Questions?