LocalConstruct Begins Construction on Blackbirds

LOS ANGELES - April 23, 2014 - PRLog -- LocalConstruct (www.localconstruct.com) - a Los Angeles-based development firm dedicated to retrofitting the urban core for a sustainable future – yesterday announced the ground-breaking for an 18-unit single-family development known as Blackbirds.  By breaking ground on the project, LocalConstruct is also breaking with the norms of urban development.  The innovative developer has teamed with renowned architect Barbara Bestor (Bestor Architecture (http://www.bestorarchitecture.com)) to leverage the small lot subdivision ordinance to create a new typology for infill development and a new style of medium density urban housing.  Blackbirds offers a less car-centric, communal lifestyle and creates a new micro-neighborhood in the heart of Echo Park, one of Los Angeles’ most desirable and eclectic communities. The project is expected to be completed in early 2015.

“Developers often bring a one-size-fits-all approach to architecture and design,” explained LocalConstruct Co-Founder Casey Lynch.  “But we’re not interested in the status quo.  Starting at the local level we want to be a force in housing and how we rebuild our cities in the Western United States.  Blackbirds is representative of our particular building ethos – build smart, think local.”

Bestor’s design for Blackbirds takes the Dutch concept of a woonerf (or living street where pedestrians and cyclists have priority over motorists) and re-focuses it through a Los Angeles-specific lens, re-appropriating space that would normally be allocated to parking for communal space.  The result: an internal street that encourages interaction between residents and creates a community within a community.    Blackbirds brings 18 single-family semi-detached units ranging in size from 1,300 sq. ft. to 1,900 sq. ft. to the one-acre hillside site in Echo Park, offering density with sensitive massing.  Pitched roofs and siding reminiscent of the neighboring craftsman homes allow these two-story residences to seamlessly blend with the adjacent 1920’s cottage architecture. The plan incorporates a robust native landscape designed by Mia Lehrer + Associates (http://mlagreen.com/) and includes a space for a communal garden.  The community also features resource-reducing systems such as tankless water heaters, dual-flush toilets, high-efficiency low-E windows, drought-tolerant landscaping, semi-permeable driveways, and recycled and no-VOC materials.

LocalConstruct has developed, or re-developed, over 1,200 housing units on the West Coast.  Major projects include: Palmer Park Apartments - redevelopment of the largest apartment complex in Downtown Colorado Springs, CO; and the Owyhee, a 125,000 sf historic adaptive-reuse project located in downtown Boise, Idaho.   The firm is also developing another 50-unit urban infill housing project in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles with architect Simon Storey (Anonymous Architects (http://anonymous-projects.com/)).  The project is currently in design and is expected to break ground in 2015.

“We are specifically interested in nature-rich neighborhoods within the urban core like Echo Park and Eagle Rock,” said LocalConstruct Co-Founder Mike Brown.  “As more people look to infill locations in search of entry level housing options, we hope to offer them something exciting and different.”

A limited number of Blackbirds units will be available for pre-sale in Fall 2014.

For more information about Blackbirds or LocalConstruct, contact:
Haily Zaki | haily@secretagentpr.com | 323.712.0298
Julie Karatzis | julie@secretagentpr.com | 650.703.8623