Licensed CA Architect: Coastal Zone Plan Code Review – Santa Monica Mtns CDP Feasibility Review

Overview I own hillside land in the Santa Monica Mountains Coastal Zone in unincorporated Los Angeles County and am designing a private residence on it. Concept and schematic design work has been done by an overseas designer, and the drawings are visually where I want them — but I need a California-licensed architect to sit on my side of the table and pressure-test the design against the code before I spend another dollar pushing it toward a Coastal Development Permit. This site is unusually constrained. Getting the design wrong at this stage doesn't cost weeks — it costs years and a Major CDP. I'm looking for someone who has actually navigated Los Angeles County Santa Monica Mountains Local Implementation Plan (LIP) entitlements and can tell me plainly where the current plans are exposed. Site & Project Facts Unincorporated Los Angeles County, Santa Monica Mountains Coastal Zone Zoning: Rural Coastal, twenty-acre minimum Program: roughly six thousand two hundred square feet, single-family residence — approximately three thousand square feet ground floor, sixteen hundred square feet upper floor, sixteen hundred square feet basement. Five bedrooms. Arched Mediterranean architectural language. Pool and accessory structures. Existing entitlement history: accepted base application on this parcel for a smaller single-family residence with basement and parking. A prior approved project on this parcel used a stepped two-story design, so county acceptance of that approach is established precedent. Entitlement consultant: already engaged. You would be the design-side technical counterpart, not the permit runner. Current status: roughly fifteen to twenty percent through the CDP process. Environmental surveys not yet complete. The Constraints That Matter These are the specific thresholds I need the design checked against. Exact code section citations are in the document package I'll share with whoever I hire. Building Site Area cap — ten thousand square feet or twenty-five percent of parcel area, whichever is less. BSA counts building pads, graded slopes, structures, decks, patios, impervious surface, and parking. Excludes fire department turnaround and one twenty-foot access driveway. Grading and CDP threshold — up to five thousand cubic yards triggers a Minor CDP; above that triggers a Major CDP, which means public hearings, Coastal Commission appeal exposure, and two to three additional years. I want to land comfortably under forty-five hundred cubic yards. Height limit — eighteen feet in a scenic resource area, measured from finished grade. Hillside grading — the LIP's hillside grading provisions effectively direct split-level or stepped pad design on slopes over fifteen percent. This site exceeds fifteen percent. Habitat — H1 habitat removal prohibited with a hundred-foot buffer; H2 mitigation fees apply. Development must be clustered. Slope stability — known instability on the western portion of the site; buildable area is east and uphill. Fire — full fire protection system required; year-round Malibu wildfire exposure. Scope of Work I've structured this in phases. Phase 1 is the actual hire. Phases 2 and 3 are real and funded, but I want to see your Phase 1 work before we scope them. Phase 1 — Design & Code Review (this engagement) Review the existing drawing set and produce a written findings report covering: Compliance assessment against every constraint listed above, item by item Independent Building Site Area calculation from the current design, including graded slope area, with your assumptions shown Preliminary grading volume estimate in cubic yards, itemized by building pad, driveway and access, pool, retaining walls, wastewater system, and slope grading Height verification from all elevations against the eighteen-foot limit measured from finished grade Identification of anything in the current design that would trigger a Major CDP, a variance, or a discretionary review we haven't planned for Assessment of whether the design is buildable as drawn — foundation approach, structural feasibility on this slope, constructability given site access Gaps in the drawing set that will stall a CDP submittal, such as missing sections, missing survey overlay, or unresolved details A prioritized list of recommended design changes, ranked by entitlement risk Phase 2 — Schematic Corrections (likely, scoped after Phase 1) Redline or redraw the problem areas identified in Phase 1. Most likely this means restructuring the grading strategy into a stepped, split-level scheme that distributes program across multiple small pads at natural grade with retaining walls between levels, plus updated sections and a revised three-dimensional model overlaid on topographic contours. Phase 3 — Architect of Record (possible) If Phases 1 and 2 go well, I would want to discuss retaining you as Architect of Record through CDP submittal, plan check, and construction documents. I'd rather build a long relationship with one person who knows this site than hand it off three times. Deliverables (Phase 1) Written findings report, organized by constraint, with clear pass, at-risk, or fail calls on each Building Site Area calculation with assumptions and methodology shown Preliminary grading estimate in cubic yards, itemized Marked-up plan sheets or annotated screenshots identifying specific problem areas Prioritized remediation list One live walkthrough session covering your findings What I'll Provide Full current drawing set, both design versions Three-dimensional models and renderings Topographic survey data and contour maps Parcel documentation and Certificates of Compliance Prior entitlement application materials and the approved-precedent project on this parcel A design brief I've already prepared analyzing the grading and Building Site Area problem, with the relevant LIP code sections cited Responsive turnaround from me, plus coordination with my entitlement consultant where it helps Required Qualifications Active California architect license, independently verifiable through the state board Demonstrated experience with hillside residential projects on slopes over fifteen percent Direct working experience with Coastal Development Permits in California; Santa Monica Mountains and Los Angeles County LIP experience strongly preferred Working fluency in grading strategy, cut and fill balance, and how graded slope area interacts with site-area caps Ability to produce a clear written technical report, not just drawings Strongly Preferred Prior projects specifically in the Santa Monica Mountains Coastal Zone or unincorporated Los Angeles County Familiarity with Los Angeles County Regional Planning and the Coastal Commission appeal process Experience with green roofs, below-grade and basement strategies for area management, and retaining wall design integration Fire-hardened design experience in Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones Budget I've left the budget open because I want to see how you scope this. Tell me what Phase 1 is worth and why, based on the deliverables above. I'm not shopping for the cheapest bid — this review is meant to protect a multi-million-dollar project from a two-year entitlement delay, and I'll pay for someone who's done it before. Give me a fixed price and a delivery timeline. Timeline Phase 1 kickoff within one to two weeks of hire; findings report delivered within three weeks of receiving the full document set. Phase 2, if we proceed, would begin immediately after.