How many people are in your practice?

We are a small, cross-disciplinary organization. Currently, we have seven people on our team and will be adding one more soon. Our team expertise includes architecture, graphic design, fabrication, urban planning, community engagement, and public policy.

Why were you originally motivated to start your own practice?

As progressive as LA is, designers still seemed relegated to the sidelines (Elizabeth) I co-founded LA Más with Mia Lehrer (a landscape architect) in 2012 after returning from practicing abroad and wanting to invest in the city I grew up in, Los Angeles. Also, although LA has had many great rebellious acts of architecture, I didn’t really see many firms taking the role of activists when lobbying for more progressive planning solutions. As progressive as LA is, designers still seemed relegated to the sidelines, coming into big development projects once a vision was set. We wanted to drive that vision and do it in partnership with communities.

What sets your practice apart? What is your guiding ethos?

Our practice is different because in some ways, we are a blend of a design studio and community development corporation. Our work gives us the privilege of working contextually but also within the complexity of government rules and political agendas. We often use architecture and design to pilot policy changes at a citywide scale. 
We often use architecture and design to pilot policy changes at a citywide scale

Our non-profit status is reflected in our mission to serve lower-income and underserved communities in our work. This year, it means we are tackling complex issues like promoting housing affordability and supporting small businesses in gentrifying or forgotten neighborhoods.

Our work and values requires us to understand the different parts of the city that we work in—and to be curious, interested, and respectful of what’s there. We never come to the table with a baked solution, instead our designs are an artifact of our approach, to address need through problem-solving by pushing the rules and delivering on promises. 

What hurdles have you come across?

We have a reputation for creating a big visual impact in a short timeframe with a small budget. Given that our partners are often government partners, our budgets are fairly low and we subsidize our time with our foundation support. 
Our partners expect us to work magic with minimal material budget for all our built projects 

Our partners also expect us to work magic with minimal material budget for all our built projects. We are proud that we’ve pushed the city to accept more temporary materials like plywood as permissible in our public projects, however, we’d welcome larger budgets that allowed us to prototype our designs with more permanent materials. 

In addition, given our ethos, we spend a lot of time building relationships in all the communities we work in. We do our best to be thoughtful with our engagement strategies, which means we give a lot of time to our community partners. We aspire to work on projects with a higher budget that pays for the extensive community engagement that we always do.

Is scaling up a goal or would you like to maintain the size of your practice?

Yes, we aspire to scale up so we can take on more projects and work beyond the City of LA. Specifically, we would love to work with other cities to test alternative forms of housing, and pilot a multiplicity of secondary homes (aka Accessory Dwelling Units). We’d also welcome the opportunity to work in other cities to help communities that want to ensure their local businesses thrive as their city changes.

What are the benefits of having your own practice? And staying small?

It's great that we get to be intentional about the projects we work on. All the projects we work on are aligned with our mission and ethos. Much of what we do isn’t intuitive as much as it is done with an intentional impact our output to the community. Rarely will we have a project where we are not passionate about, which is a privilege.
Staying small means our whole team is wearing multiple hats 

For now, staying small means our whole team is wearing multiple hats. Designers are doing community engagement, urban planners are hosting design charrettes… And for better or worse, all of us know how to navigate City Hall!