Los Angeles County

Building in Altadena.

Altadena is where most of our current work is. It sits unincorporated against the base of the San Gabriels, which means two things that surprise people: there is no city hall to take your plans to, and the terrain changes noticeably over a few blocks.

The Eaton Fire took a very large part of the community in January 2025, and the rebuild is still under way street by street. We are on several of those lots, and we photograph the work from the first day on the ground.

Request an assessment Call (626) 763-1376

Permits and inspections

Los Angeles County Building and Safety

What matters when you build here.

Permits go to the County, not a city

Because Altadena is unincorporated, plan check and inspections run through Los Angeles County rather than a municipal building department. It is a different submittal process from Pasadena next door, and worth knowing before you assume the two work the same way.

The ground is not flat

North of the flats the lots slope, sometimes considerably. That drives stepped foundations, retaining and drainage design, and it affects how close a truck can get to the work, all of which show up in the price long before any finish does.

Fire hazard requirements

Much of the area sits in a designated fire hazard severity zone, which brings requirements for exterior assemblies, vents, roofing and defensible space. On a rebuild these are part of the design from the start rather than something added at the end.

Our work here