As young Los Angeles firms and established corporations seek to forge an identity through their office spaces, local contractors are using traditional materials and finishes in new ways. The contracting firms on this list have been entrusted with delivering on the aesthetics of the city’s biggest businesses.

10) Turelk

Website | (310) 835-3736 | 555 W. 5th Street Suite 120 Los Angeles CA 90013

Mike Turi and Mike Paselk co-founded Turelk in 1978, and Turi has managed day-to-day operations ever since. Both previously employed at Morse Diesel, Paselk has handled sales and strategic planning for Turelk since its inception. He is also the project executive on many of their contracts. The general contracting firm consistently reaches or surpasses a $100M project volume, primarily in tenant improvements, and boasts a client list full of well-known names, such as UCLA, Equity Office, Kilroy Realty, and The Irvine Company. The company now has over 100 employees across three offices in locations around Southern California, in Newport Beach, Long Beach, and L.A. Los Angeles Business Journal has listed Turelk as one of the top local contractors.

Photo Courtesy of Pinterest

Featured Projects

Turelk built Taco Bell Western headquarters in Irvine. The offices, located on a street named for Taco Bell founder Glen Bell, serve more than the typical function, as the fast food company invites fans to come test out new menu items and share images from their visit on social media. Within its 181K square feet of interior space, Turkel created two main spaces for mass meetings, the situation room, and the test kitchen. In the situation room, a wall of screens tallies information about the news, Taco Bell’s social engagement, and other details essential to the communications team. The test kitchen, and obvious centerpiece for the brand, has streamlined stadium seating with countertops at every level and screens to show close ups of the culinary team at work. For taste tests, the designers and contractors devised numbered stations where new menu items are passed through a wall slot and questions about the product come up on a tablet. The expansive cafeteria includes — what else — a Taco Bell.

9) MATT Construction

Website | (213) 542-7900 | 261 S Figueroa Street Suite 120 Los Angeles CA 90012

Paul and Al Matt, and Paul’s son Steve, established Matt Construction in 1991. As Executive Vice President and CEO, respectively, Al and Steve have remained involved in every project following Paul’s passing. Headquartered just south of downtown Los Angeles, Matt Construction has won AIA Los Angeles Building Team of the Year twice in 25 years of business, and also earned the AIA Los Angeles Presidential Award. As business has scaled, the firm continues to deliver over 90% of projects under a guaranteed maximum price. An ENR California Top 50 Contractor, Matt Construction brought in $311M in regional revenue in 2015. Matt Construction was the contractor of choice when leading Los Angeles architect Richard Landry built new offices for Landry Design Group.

Photo Courtesy of Altitude Design Office

Featured Projects

The Saban Media Center in North Hollywood functions as a theater, production space, and offices for the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences. Gensler designed the 42,000 square-foot project, which replaced an outdated facility on the site. The new building has a grand entrance ensconced in cantilevered steel and glass. The Wolf theater inside has 600 luxurious stadium seats and a 62’32’ curved screen. Wood slats in varying sizes both create visual interest in the theater before the lights go down and ensure optimal distribution of sound and light. Whatever is showing in the theater can also simulcast in the building’s glass-walled Governor’s Room, conference room, green room, and throughout other spaces.

8) Morley Builders

Website | (310) 399-1600 | 3330 Ocean Park Boulevard Santa Monica CA 90405

Morley Benjamin established a building company in 1947 after serving in the military during WWII and returning to Southern California. Sherman “Tex” Given partnered with Morley to build single family homes, and they continued working together for over 30 years. The ENR California Top 40 contractor expanded to education and civic projects in the 1950s, and built commercial buildings and studios through the 1970s. In the intervening decades, the company has stayed connected to the Benjamin family and maintained consistent standards under employee ownership. They constructed esteemed Southern California attractions such as the Getty Villa Museum and the California Science Center. With more than 30 years with the firm, President Charles Muttillo is a knowledgeable leader among the other experienced staff.

Featured Projects

For the Pen Factory Adaptive Reuse & Addition project, Morley Builders is converting an old Santa Monica manufacturing facility into 203K square feet of creative offices for multiple tenants. As designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the building will be divided into mezzanine levels set under brand new roofing and skylights. Curtain walls will bring in additional natural light. A locker room with showers, underground parking, and bike storage provide expected amenities in the tech sector. Morley Builders is also handling landscaping in buildouts of surrounding decks and courtyards, which will feature drought-resistant plants and a garden lined with semi-private patios for meetings and taking lunch.

7) Casco

Website | (949) 679-6880 | 9850 Irvine Center Drive Irvine CA 92618

Founder and President of Casco Contractors, Cheryl Osborn, is an attentive and responsive leader to a capable team of builders and project managers. Orange County Business Journal named Osborn among the region’s most influential business leaders. Since 2000, the firm has maintained a strong focus on offices, factories, and retail locations, and sees clients through the build process from pre-construction to completion. Osborn, along with industry veteran and Director of Operations Justin Park, has assembled a staff with diverse career backgrounds. As each project presents its own unique set of challenges, Casco assembles teams based on individual expertise, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach. Most professionals on staff have been with the company for more than seven years and bring a distinct skill set to the company. Building Owners and Managers Association Orange County chapter honored Casco with an Outstanding Building of the Year Award for an industrial project for The Irvine Company.

Featured Projects

BNA Design drew plans for NextVR headquarters in Newport Beach, and Casco executed the build. The virtual reality developer required an open and flexible space. The lobby, formerly that of the Ritz Restaurant, features grand ceiling heights, but streamlined decor. A white and dark wood reception desk pops against polished concrete floors and a cut stone back wall. To attain a Brooklyn meets Southern California aesthetic, the design incorporates forged steel and weathered barn wood doors that open the office space to a 2,500 square-foot open-air patio. The furnished outdoor area is made for luxuriating in a quick break or throwing an impromptu office party. Back inside, a waffle ceiling and customizable lighting tracks allow the marketing and development teams to achieve optimal comfort levels while they work. IIDA nominated the office for a Calibre Award.

6) Environmental Contracting

Website | (213) 620-8008 | 880 East 1st Street Los Angeles CA 90012

The Interior Design Association Lifetime Achievement Award-winner Aram Arakelian established Environmental Contracting (ECC) in 1984, and for over 30 years the firm has tackled a diverse mix of commercial projects out of their office in Downtown Los Angeles. Their reputation for quality execution and strong client relationships helps the team to attract and retain talent. Ara Bedros is VP of Operations and Safety Manager, and brings his knowledge as a LEED Accredited Professional to every job. President and Project Manager Jack Jibilian has been with the company since 1996, and, even now, gets personally involved in ECC’s most challenging contracts.

Featured Projects

ECC partnered with HOK Architects to create new headquarters for Pritzker Group, an equity investment firm. The 7,000 square-foot space in the Westwood Gateway seeks to bring the sun-bathed, easy-going aesthetic of Southern California indoors, and to serve as a backdrop for the Managing Partners’ extensive contemporary art collection. In just 12 weeks, ECC built a space with wings in two styles; a conservative western zone that houses the Managing Partners’ office and asset management team, and an eastern zone for the venture capital team and social employee amenities. Bleacher seating and shocks of orange in the communal kitchen encourage more casual gatherings. Pure white glossy walls and surfaces throughout the rest of the office make a clean backdrop for museum-quality pieces. Pritzker Group headquarters won a IIDA Southern California Calibre Award, and the office was featured in Interior Design magazine.

5) JDM Contractors

Website | (213) 788-3366 | 350 South Figueroa Street Suite 580 Los Angeles CA 90071

JDM Contractors eschews quantity in favor of quality. The full-service firm only takes on a select few clients at a time, ensuring that senior personnel take the lead in every project. The three Principals — Project Management lead Mark Whelan, Pre-Construction Lead David Wu, and Field Operation lead Jesse Paniagua — have over 70 cumulative years of experience. From their office in the Financial District, the team has built lasting relationships with local architects, subcontractors, and city building officials that help them to complete builds on time and on budget. IIDA Southern California Chapter has recognized JDM Contractors work.

Featured Projects

JDM Contractors and HLW created a West Hollywood office for media and technology company Whalerock Industries. The unique angles of the building created design and construction challenges. Ceiling soffits in varied sizes running from the reception area through the rest of the suite play up the unique architecture and draws the eye toward the sweeping views around the perimeter of the space. With input from specialized engineers, studios and editing suites were placed in building locations with the least acoustic interference. Most of the suite is finished with sleek white materials, including the office kitchen with a bar-style island and wall-mounted televisions. The adjacent dining area can be sectioned off for large meetings with a translucent red glass curtain. A sealed concrete floor gives a touch of character to this communal employee area.

4) Pinnacle Contracting Corporation

Website | (818) 888-6548 | 21800 Burbank Blvd., Suite 210 Woodland Hills, CA 91367

Chairman of the Board, J. Michael Grossman, and President, Mark A. Tieman, have close to 50 years of combined experience in Los Angeles construction. Since 1993, Pinnacle has been building a list of premier clients, including Paramount Pictures, The Irvine Company, USC, and Farmer’s Insurance. Their annual revenue now tops $50M. All of the company’s 50 employees work out of the Woodland Hills office, executing a range of private, commercial projects throughout Southern California. Under Co-Founder and Corporate Secretary Denise Grossman, the firm was honored with a USC Woman-Owned Business Award. Pinnacle has also received multiple Awards of Excellence for architecture from Los Angeles Business Council and been nominated for Contractor of the Year by IIDA.

Photo Courtesy of Clive Wilkinson Architects

Featured Projects

For entertainment production company Funny or Die, Clive Wilkinson Architects and Pinnacle created West Hollywood headquarters that are functional also capture the quirkiness of the company’s viral content. The 24,000 square-foot office, spread over half of the first and all of the second floor of an office building on Formosa Avenue, is a filmable production space and equipped for typical office work. For the finishes, exposed studs, pegboard, and plywood reflect Funny or Die’s scrappy mentality. Polished concrete floors and acoustic foam ceilings remind that the space is still indeed a real workplace.  

3) Sierra Pacific Constructors

Website | (747) 888-5000 | 22212 Ventura Boulevard Woodland Hills CA 91364

Principals Ken La Spada and Cary Gerhardt co-founded Sierra Pacific in 1980. In the last 30 years, Sierra Pacific Constructors has completed more than 3,000 commercial projects in Los Angeles, all of which contribute to their reputation for high-quality and on-time delivery. At 85%, a large portion of the company’s $100M revenue is generated through repeat clients. Among those clients are NBCUniversal, Oprah Winfrey, Disney, and Netflix. The executive team averages more than 20 years each with the company.

Featured Projects

Sierra Pacific Constructors built Oprah Winfrey Network headquarters in West Hollywood. The reception area is finished in hardwood, polished stone, and warm backlighting. The broad main office space is divided into “neighborhoods” of cubicles. In the OWN Cafe, employees can dine at casual, comfortable tables, or in conversation pits ensconced in mesh screens. The dining area and lounge can also transform into company-wide screenings. Shubin Donaldson and Sierra Pacific Constructors worked together to produce a new space for advertising firm InterMedia. The design is stylized to capture every era of the advertising industry, past and future. Color-changing inset lighting outlines much of the space, including the exaggerated, bowed, floor-to-ceiling soffits that define meeting areas. While most of the finishes are white to reflect the brand’s signature purple lighting, obsidian, concrete floors, dark wood beams and wall panels break up and warm the office.

2) Caliber Construction, Inc.

Website | (714) 255-2700 | 240 North Orange Avenue Brea CA 92821

One of the Orange County Business Journal’s Top 15 Tenant Improvement Contractors, Caliber Construction has over 20 years of experience making high-quality, individualized workspaces for premier Southern California companies. Doug Basset and Jim Roy founded the company in Anaheim in 1992, and within three years, attained a 90%+ client retention rate. The company earned an AIA LA Citation Award for Vans headquarters and a Building Owners and Managers Association award for a commercial renovation in Newport Beach. IIDA has nominated several of Caliber’s projects for Calibre awards. In 2015, Caliber surpassed $40M in annual revenue.

Featured Projects

The premier Los Angeles architects of Shubin Donaldson partnered with Caliber Construction to build Murad headquarters in El Segundo. The physician-led skin care brand is at home in a 41,400 square-foot space designed around patterns and strategies found in nature. Distinct zones are known as the facilities “organs,” with departments assigned to each space based on a proximity to each other that would facilitate their work processes. In a further deference to physiology, the office includes an indoor running track and exercise equipment laid out in a circuit, an exterior patio for rest and relaxation, and a miniature spa for product testing. The firm also built offices for Speedo, which include a 14’x14’, above-ground pool for testing out new suits and giving product demonstrations through to the two-story glass-walled lobby. The design favors bundled work pods rather than typical cubicles. Each pod has an 8’x10’ barn door that can be shut for a quieter, more focused workspace.

1) Howard Building

Website | (213) 683-1850 | 707 Wilshire Blvd.Suite 3750 Los Angeles CA 90017

Mike Howard established Howard Building in 1983. After more than 30 years collaborating with partners Paul McGunnigle and Gary Conrad, the company moved to employee ownership and operates out of offices in Costa Mesa and Downtown Los Angeles. Howard and McGunnigle still lead the company as President and CEO, respectively. Howard Building frequently collaborates with prominent architects. They were the contractor of choice when Shimoda Design Group sought to bring to life their designs for J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot offices. The lauded firm’s projects have received 54 nominated for IIDA Calibre Design Awards and won 14 times. Their portfolio includes more than 30 LEED certified buildings.

Featured Projects

Jessica Alba’s lifestyle brand, The Honest Co., partnered with Rapt Studio and Howard Building to create an office space for their fast-growing staff. The 80,000 square-foot headquarters reflects the company’s focus on sustainability, and their startup roots. Each floor is organized around a communal kitchen, inviting experimentation and socialization. Though the kitchens are state of the art, they lack the sterile, blank design of a typical test kitchen. Instead, each has a different mood that would fit into a private home. One kitchen extends out onto an outdoor deck where employees can bring their laptops and work under the sun.