Preservation Architect Builds on the Past

For Robert Chattel, 17 years in business as a preservation architect have been a continuous upward curve.

When Chattel Architecture Planning & Preservation Inc. (chattel.us) outgrew space in one unit of a Sherman Oaks four-unit apartment complex and began to spill over into his adjoining residential apartment, Chattel moved to offices on Ventura Boulevard.

But even with “by referral only” painted on his firm’s frosted-glass door, he’s had to expand again, recently taking over additional office space upstairs to accommodate his five full-time employees.

“We’re busy; we’ve always been busy,” Chattel said. “Historic preservation is a growth industry. Things are getting older every day.”

But Chattel’s half-joking explanation belies the real reasons behind his success: his lifelong fascination with building things and a deep curiosity about history, combined with his ability to work on large, complex projects as part of a team.

His firm’s services include identifying whether buildings are eligible for historic designation and, if so, working with developers and property owners to create designs that enable the buildings to be used and still comply with historic standards. He also provides assistance with obtaining tax credits and grants, overseeing construction and negotiating with agencies.

Projects his firm have tackled include Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center, historic buildings within the Veterans Affairs complex in West Los Angeles, Los Angeles Unified School District’s Ambassador Hall, Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, the Golden Gate Theater in East Los Angeles, the Breed Street Shul in Boyle Heights and, more recently, the Las Vegas Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, also called the “Mob Museum.” (themobmuseum.org)

“We don’t do any advertising,” Chattel said. “It’s all word of mouth, recommendations and referrals.” 

It’s a specialized expertise that Chattel said has its origins in his childhood and Lego building blocks. His father, who owned a number of buildings and was always revamping them, would tell his son to design something for the buildings with the blocks. Chattel would set himself to the task.

That sparked an interest that continued for him during three years at Beverly Hills High School’s architecture program.

After one of his model buildings won a high school architecture prize at the California State Fair, he went on to major in architecture at UC Berkeley and obtained a master’s degree in historical preservation from Columbia University in New York City.

Before starting his business in 1994, he spent a year as director of programs for the Los Angeles Conservancy and five years with the Community Redevelopment Agency of the city of Los Angeles.

For CRA/LA, he worked on downtown’s Central Library, the Library Tower (now the U.S. Bank Tower), the historic core around Broadway and Spring streets, and Engine Company No. 28, a historic fire station reconfigured as a restaurant.

The work gave him the experience he would later use in his own business, working with teams of attorneys, architects and administrators and discovering the historic background behind buildings.

“Like John Percival Jones, whose house became the Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica, donated land for the Veterans Administration,” Chattel said. “That’s the reason the VA is there, because he gave the property to Los Angeles.

Nearly every one of Chattel’s projects involves historical research and keeps him and his staff, enthusiastic and fascinated with the work.

“I get to learn new things every single day,” he said.

Chattel Architecture Planning & Preservation, Inc., 13417 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks.