Hoonigan is a company that’s known for its rebellious, devil-may-care attitude. This approach serves them well in their business of creating exciting videos and experiential events related to cars for a “young, aggressive audience.” They love a good burnout, doughnut, or drift, and tend to enjoy living on the edge.
While this attitude is part of what has attracted a huge audience to their online content and events, it can have its downside—especially when it comes to adhering to California’s strict building codes.
When Hoonigan’s business began to blow up, they found themselves needing a new, larger space to accommodate their growing staff and business activities. They identified an abandoned industrial space in the City of Long Beach and hired a general contractor to start outfitting it to meet their needs. Like many rapidly growing businesses, they were in a hurry to modify and move into their new space.
Not long into the project, the City of Long Beach’s code enforcement officials were tipped off to their construction project and showed up at their door asking to see permits for the work being done. When they couldn’t supply the needed permits, the City sent them a notice of violation.
That’s when Hoonigan called M. Grisafe Architects, an architecture firm in Long Beach, California. M. Grisafe’s team of architects and engineers immediately got to work reviewing the work that had already been done, and then met with officials at the City of Long Beach to determine what would need to be done to bring everything into compliance with local codes. Because of M. Grisafe’s great relationship with the City of Long Beach, they were able to get quick answers that would help Hoonigan move forward with their improvement project.
In the meantime, Hoonigan’s business continued to grow, and they realized they needed even more space than the industrial space could provide. They decided to rent out the adjacent building, and M. Grisafe helped them come up with a plan that would best utilize the space, which included the building of mezzanines that would, in essence, increase the building’s square footage without increasing its footprint.
Once completed, Hoonigan’s new spaces should meet all of their needs, while at the same time being consistent with their brand and satisfying all of the City’s requirements.
A good architect does much more than just design a floor plan. A good architect designs spaces that inspire, that solve complex problem, and yes, that meet local codes.
If you are looking for an architect in Long Beach for your commercial or residential project, contact M. Grisafe Architects or visit their website to learn more about their capabilities.