By Lisa BooneTribune News Service
LOS ANGELES โ About 10 years ago, Julie Zemel started worrying about her mother, Mimi, who lived alone in an apartment in Chicago and was often stuck inside for months because of the weather.
โIt was clear she was becoming increasingly fragile, physically and socially isolated, with no relatives or friends living nearby,โ Zemel says. โIt wasnโt safe for her to live so far away from me.โ
At that time, apartments were affordable in northeastern Los Angeles, and Zemel talked Mimi into moving. She found her mother a pleasant one-bedroom apartment, where Mimi lived alone. The two of them were close, but not so close that Mimi lost her independence.
But Mimiโs comfortable housing situation was upended when the landlord notified her that the apartment complex would be renovated and all tenants would have to move out.
In Los Angeles, where affordable housing is scarce and theย population is aging fast,ย Zemel looked โeverywhereโ for an apartment for her mother, now 89, only to be rejected. โNo one would give her a lease, even when I offered to co-sign,โ she says of the landlords who expressed concern about Mimiโs age and Zemelโs mortgage debt, despite Mimi having cash in her account and collecting Social Security benefits. โIt felt like age discrimination.โ
When Zemel found an apartment in a senior building near the home she shares with partner Vladimir Gallegos on the east side of Los Angeles, Mimi moved in but wasnโt happy. โShe had to downsize to a studio,โ Zemel says, noting other downsides, such as the long walk to the elevator and the absence of grab bars to offer assurance in case of a fall.
Mimi lived in the studio, which Zemel describes as โnot ideal but served its purposeโ for about five years until her health deteriorated and she had to move into a nursing home. Eventually she received a covetedย assisted living waiverย from the state, which provides a discount at the facility she lives in now. But Zemel still wanted a better way to care for her mother.
She considered how she could move Mimi in with her and Gallegos. โI thought of dividing our living room in half and placing a hospital bed in there, because our two bedrooms are small and located on the second floor,โ she says. She tried to visualize every possible scenario, understanding that it would be difficult for her mother, who had always lived alone.
Then she devised a plan that terrified her both logistically and financially: Build an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, behind the coupleโs 1890 Victorian home. The lot may have been small, at 3,500 square feet, but the falling-down garage in the back had easy alley access and a concrete pad that would be convenient for a second dwelling and tenant.
When the couple contacted architect Rachel Allen ofย Los Angeles-based Radar Inc.,ย whom they had met through mutual friends, the architect understood their need for a home incorporating universal design concepts.
โMy husband, Gary, uses a wheelchair,โ Allen says. โThat insight helped us with things like the bathroom design, which features hand bars, a curb-free shower and a sink that can accommodate a wheelchair or an attendant.โ
Led by Radar and general contractor Marco Chupina, the 650-square-foot ADU project ultimately took four years to complete โ one year for design and permits, two years for construction (including the pandemic), and one additional year for finishes, inspections and solar โ and cost approximately $400,000.
There were many pitfalls along the way, including bureaucratic delays, soaring lumber prices during the COVID-19 pandemic, financing and inflation. Due toย the high cost of solar,ย which the state of California requires for newly built ADUs, Zemel chose to source the panels herself rather than through her general contractor. This allowed her to shop around for bids and financing. โI started working on it last August, and itโs finally going through,โ she says. โIt was a pain โ partly because a lot of solar companies think they are walking into a traditional build โ but itโs a good thing. My mom needs her amenities if there areย black- or brownouts.โ
Looking back, Zemel says she might have been dissuaded if she had known how long and costly theย ADU processย would be. โIt was very stressful and frightening, and it took a long time for me to process what I had to do,โ she says. It still feels stressful for Zemel, who is a teacher. โThere are people with much more money than me and my family for whom itโs less risky. I am the first person in my family to own a home. I have to be careful.โ
Designed to allow Mimi to age in place, the agave-colored ADU is modern but fits into the surrounding historic preservation zone with a shifting gable roofline that opens up the interiors and makes the ADU feel more spacious. The unit features one bedroom and an accessible bathroom with a frosted glass door that offers privacy, and it can accommodate an attendant if necessary. A full-size kitchen with a washer and dryer is made even more convenient thanks to an island on wheels that can be moved if itโs in the way.
Because the ADU is located in an alley surrounded by neighbors, the team, including senior associate Karina Contreras, put a lot of thought into the windows and how the ADU would fit into the community.
โWindows need to be the right proportions,โ notes Allen. To illustrate, she points to the living room window facing the main house. โThe sill is high enough so that when youโre sitting in the living room, itโs private.โ
The team also chose not to install a wooden or brick fence along the alley that would serve as another wall. โI want to see the alley,โ Zemel says. โIt gives us more of an opportunity to interact with our neighbors,โ including many who use it as a cut-through to access the neighborhoodโs streets.
Adds Allen: โEyes on the street builds relationships.โ
A small patio off the bedroom offers a serene space for Mimi to read and enjoy the outdoors. โMy mom loves bird-watching,โ Zemel says of a drought-tolerant strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), planted near the patio, that attracts birds.
Multiple skylights are installed throughout the ADU to capture light and brighten the interiors. โThe light is so beautiful here in the evening,โ Zemel adds. โYou never feel hemmed in.โ
The homeowners still donโt have a certificate of occupancy as they wait to install solar panels and a curb drain to satisfy stormwater requirements. To illustrate theย ever-changing ADU laws in Californiaย meant to alleviate the housing crisis, Allen notes that theย Los Angeles Countyย stormwater regulationsย causing a delayย have been lifted for those who start building small-scale residential projects now.
Despite all the setbacks, Zemel is pleased with the design and glad they added the ADU.
โRachelโs design is so much more than I could have ever imagined,โ Zemel says. The ADU could have been boring, she says of Allenโs elegant problem-solving ability. โItโs doing a lot with a little. Itโs not boxy; I think itโs beautiful.โ
Recently, the city informed them they can move forward with the curb drain. The solar company plans to install panels next month. As their contractor awaits the new permit to complete the work, Zemel hopes that Mimi can move in by the end of summer. โSheโs managing where she is,โ Zemel says, โbut she really wants to live in her own space.โ
Originally Published: July 27, 2024 at 6:00 a.m.