Two Altadena Fire Rebuilds Just Poured Their Foundations
East Las Flores Drive and East Palm Street, two Altadena fire rebuilds, went from drawings to concrete. What each drainage design means for the lot.
Read MoreLos Angeles Grading & Drainage Insights
Engineering Insights — perspectives on grading plans, drainage, hillside construction, and fire rebuilds in Los Angeles from B+W Engineering.
Latest
Designing a Malibu Hillside Driveway With 3D Grading Models
A vacant Malibu lot off Pacific Coast Highway sits on a 22% slope. Here's how we used 3D terrain models to fit a 15% fire access road with minimal grading.
Read More
Our Own Altadena Fire Rebuild: Glenrose Avenue Site Clearing
Cleared our Glenrose Avenue Altadena fire rebuild lot: driveway concrete, fire sprinklers, sewer lateral out, soils report done, rough graded 1% to street.
Read More
Our Own Altadena Fire Rebuild: Glenrose Avenue Drainage
Our own Altadena fire rebuild on Glenrose Avenue: reversing a rear-sloping lot with area drains and a 12 inch parkway drain, no pump.
Read More
W Mendocino Ave Drainage Design for an Altadena Fire Rebuild
W Mendocino Ave fire rebuild in Altadena: two-story house with cellar and garage ADU, tied into the existing driveway apron and routed to a rain garden.
Read More
Altadena Is About to Get a Grading Plan Backlog. Here's What That Means for Architects.
Lots in Altadena are getting fully graded with no grading plans on file. When the county catches up, here's what it's going to take to fix.
Read More
Pacific Palisades Earthwork: How We Stayed Under 1000 CY to Avoid a Haul Route
Earthwork analysis for a Pacific Palisades single-family home with a basement. Existing and proposed contours plus cut/fill depth model to stay under 1000 CY and skip the LADBS haul route hearing.
Read MoreWildfire Tax Relief Extended for LA Fire Rebuilds
Senate passed the Padilla wildfire tax relief bill August 7, 2026. Insurance settlements on the 2025 LA fires stay out of federal taxable income through 2026.
Read More
Pacific Palisades Grading Plan: 12% Slope, Basement Level, and Deep Trench Drainage
Grading plan for a Pacific Palisades hillside rebuild on a 12% slope. Garage and basement on same level with lightwell, area drains, and deep trench drainage to the street.
Read More