AIA in California Presents….

Rebuilding & Recovery:  Los Angeles County Status Update 

AIA in California recognizes the immense challenges facing our city and county in the wake of the tragic and devasting wildfires that have stricken the Los Angeles County region. The swift and equitable rebuilding of homes, businesses, and public infrastructure is paramount while simultaneously ensuring the safety, resilience, and long-term sustainability of our communities.

This program will serve as an opportunity for architects, engineers, landscape architects, contractors, civic leaders, and community members to hear a status update about the County of LA’s rebuilding and recovery processes, procedures, anticipated timelines, and current standards and regulations.  (*Virtual on Zoom.  Register below to receive the access link)

FEATURED SPEAKERS:  (12:00pm – 1:00pm)

• Ciara Barnett, P.E. – Co-Chair of the LA County Rebuilding Program
• Mitch Glaser, AICP – Assistant Deputy Director of Los Angeles County Regional Planning

OPENING REMARKS: (11:30am – 12:00pm)

• Carina Mills, AIA – 2025 AIA California President & Senior Director of Talent Management, RDC-S111
• Chava Danielson, AIA – 2025 President, AIA Los Angeles & Principal, DSH // architecture
• Jonathan Gilliam, AIA– President, AIA San Fernando Valley & Principal, Gilliam Architects
• Jodie Mendelson, AIA – Principal, JAM Project Management

HOW YOU CAN HELP? (1:00pm – 1:30pm)

• Greg Kochanowski, AIA, ASLA – Design Principal, Practice & Founder, The Wild: A Research Lab
• Mohamed Sharif, AIA, RIBA – Partner, Sharif, Lynch: Architecture & Director, Undergraduate Program in Architectural Studies and Graduate Program Design Faculty, UCLA Architecture and Urban Design

REGISTER HERE

During this program, you will learn more about:

• Rebuilding Resources
• How to apply for permits w/ EPIC LA
• Like for Like Rebuild Parameters
  • New Construction (beyond Like for Like) in wildfire impacted areas
• Temporary Housing Permits and ADU opportunities
• Rebuilding Workshops
• Prospective changes to the Building Code 
• One-Stop Permitting Centers
• Any additional changes as directed in recent Executive Orders
  • Executive Order N-20-25
  • Executive Order N-4-25
  • Additional orders/ updates related to recovery and rebuilding efforts.

CLICK HERE to read more about AIA in California’s coordinated action plan to respond to the wildfires.

FEATURED SPEAKERS:

Ciara Barnett, P.E. – Assistant Deputy Director, Los Angeles County Public Works & Co-Chair of the LA County Rebuilding Program

Ciara Barnett is an Assistant Deputy Director at Los Angeles County Public Works. She has been an employee of the County of Los Angeles for 25 years and has extensive government experience in municipal services.

She is a registered civil engineer with a Master of Science in Structural Engineering and a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Cal Poly Pomona. She is a Certified Access Specialist and is currently serving as President of the City and County Engineers Association.

Mitch Glaser, AICP – Assistant Deputy Director, Los Angeles County Regional Planning

Mitch Glaser has been a member of the LA County Planning team for over 23 years. He has held various roles in code enforcement, long-range planning, and current planning, and formerly served as a Hearing Officer. In his current role as an Assistant Deputy Director in the Current Planning Division, he is helping residents and businesses in Altadena, Sunset Mesa, and other unincorporated communities rebuild and recover after the Eaton and Palisades fires.

OPENING REMARKS:

Carina Mills, AIA – 2025 AIA California President & Senior Director of Talent Management, RDC-S111

Carina Mills began her volunteer service with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in 2014, and ten years later, she is serving as President of AIA California and its 11,000 members. An architect with a deep love for her profession, Carina also has a tenacious commitment to change aspects of the AEC industry. Like many who were born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, she grew up an avid environmentalist and pursued a career in architecture, hopeful about making buildings better for the environment and its occupants. Motivated to support her industry and peers, she is now in her 6th year with the executive leadership team at AIA California and working diligently to address environmental and social issues responsibly.

Outside her volunteer roles, Carina serves as the Senior Director of Talent Management for a multi-disciplinary practice in Long Beach, Studio 111-RDC where she focuses her experience and skills on empowering colleagues to be even more engaged and successful professionals. In both her AIA and practice roles, she continues to advocate for evolving models of mentorship to make talent development more intentional and inclusive.

Chava Danielson, AIA – 2025 President, AIA Los Angeles & Principal, DSH // architecture

Chava Danielson, AIA, a native Angeleno, is Principal of DSH // architecture, with specialties in design, project advocacy, and serving non-profit organizations committed to their communities. She focuses on imparting beauty and sensitive programming to recharge underserved neighborhoods through educational, therapeutic and residential projects.

Danielson is Adjunct Professor at the USC School of Architecture. She currently co-chairs the AIA Los Angeles’ Government Outreach Committee and has served as a Director for the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design. She holds an M.Arch. from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University and a B.A. in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Berkeley.

Jonathan Gilliam, AIA – President, AIA San Fernando Valley & Principal, Gilliam Architects

Principal of Gilliam Architects, 2025 President of AIA San Fernando Valley, and board member of the Valley Economic Alliance. Gilliam Architects focuses on custom residential, ranging in scale from ADU conversions to high-end residential with an emphasis on providing affordable and functional design solutions to our clients.

Jodie Mendelson, AIA – Principal, JAM Project Management

Jodie Mendelson, AIA is a licensed architect and the owner of JAM Project Management, a project and construction management advisory consultancy in Los Angeles, California, that focuses on culture and entertainment, healthcare, and mixed-use developments – both historic and contemporary. Jodie wants to help educate Angelenos on the rebuild process and to connect AEC experts to form design-build partnerships and share resources.

HOW YOU CAN HELP?

Greg Kochanowski, AIA, ASLA – Design Principal, Practice & Founder, The Wild: A Research Lab

Greg is a licensed architect, landscape designer, and educator in California with over 26 years of experience. His work weaves together architecture, landscape, and urbanism to create sustainable, equitable, and innovative environments that honor and enhance the unique qualities of place. Building on this foundation, Greg’s research emphasizes holistic design processes that foster resilience and harmony between natural systems, culture, infrastructure, and development, addressing the complex challenges posed by climate change.

Greg’s work has been featured in venues such as the Venice and Rotterdam Biennales and has received recognition, including the Architectural League of New York’s Young Architects Forum Award and honors from the AIALA, AIAPF, ASLA, and AIACA. He has presented at ASLA and AIA National Conventions, sharing insights on Southern California’s Wildland-Urban Interface and its recurring fire, flood, and debris flow cycles, exploring broader climate impacts across the Western U.S. and globally.

He is the author of The Wild and the upcoming Wildlands in the Expanded Field: Designing in the Pyrocene (Routledge Press, 2026). In connection with issues of wildfire and climate, Greg’s research also delves into affordable housing strategies aimed at addressing pressing social and environmental challenges. This includes innovative ownership models and housing solutions for vulnerable populations, emphasizing equitable, resilient, and sustainable communities.

As Partner and Director of Design at Practice in Pasadena, CA, and Founder of The Wild: A Research Lab, a nonprofit addressing urban climate issues, he advances design research and advocacy by bridging innovative practice with critical research. He currently serves on the Board of Community Design Group and previously served as Co-President of the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design.

Mohamed Sharif, AIA, RIBA – Partner, Sharif, Lynch: Architecture & Director, Undergraduate Program in Architectural Studies and Graduate Program Design Faculty, UCLA Architecture and Urban Design

Mohamed Sharif is an Associate Adjunct Professor at UCLA’s Department of Architecture and Design, where he teaches graduate and undergraduate courses and directs the undergraduate program. Recently, he worked with Professor Hitoshi Abe on a multi-year design research platform focused on resilience and regenerative urbanism.

His practice, Sharif, Lynch: Architecture, with Todd Lynch, has completed several award-winning projects in Los Angeles.

Sharif’s work has been published in journals and periodicals, including 306090, a+u, arq, Constructs, JAE, the Getty Center, Log, and POOL. He served on the arq editorial board (Cambridge University Press, 2006–2016) and was President of the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design (2007–2009), later joining its Advisory Board (2010–2016).

REGISTER HERE