The Project
Los Angeles, CA 90025 (West LA) County: City of Los Angeles · LADBS
Project: Garage to ADU — AB 68 Ministerial Approval
Service: ADU Site Plan + Full Permit Set + PE Stamp
Timeline: 6 business days
The Situation
The homeowner in West Los Angeles wanted to convert a detached two-car garage into a 480 sq ft one-bedroom ADU. California AB 68 makes garage-to-ADU conversions ministerially approved — no discretionary review, no public hearing, no neighbor notification.
But ministerially approved does not mean unregulated. The LADBS (Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety) still requires a complete permit set: site plan, floor plans, elevations, structural, and MEP drawings. The permit review must happen — it just cannot be denied for discretionary reasons if the project meets objective standards.
The owner had received a quote from a local Los Angeles architect: $8,400 for the full drawing set and PE stamp. Six-week timeline.
What We Did
Site Plan: LADBS-formatted. Lot boundaries per Los Angeles County Assessor records. Existing house and garage footprints. Proposed ADU access pathway from street. Required parking: under AB 68, this garage conversion was exempt from replacement parking requirements. Impervious surface calculation per LA grading and drainage requirements.
Floor Plans: Existing garage layout. Proposed ADU — bedroom, bathroom with shower, kitchen with range and refrigerator, living area. Door and window schedule. Room dimensions. ADA-clearance bathroom layout (not required for ADU under 750 sq ft, but included for quality).
Exterior Elevations: Four sides. Garage door replaced by main entry door (west elevation). New window added on south elevation. Roof unchanged.
Structural: Existing wood frame garage with concrete slab. Structural analysis of existing framing for residential occupancy (R-3). New hold-down hardware at sill plate connections per ASCE 7-22 for Los Angeles seismic zone. Connection details.
Electrical: New panel sub-feed from main house. Circuit layout. Load calculations. AFCI protection per California Electrical Code.
Plumbing: New kitchen and bathroom fixtures. Isometric diagram. Connection to existing building sewer lateral.
HVAC: Mini-split system. Manual J load calculation for 480 sq ft conditioned space. Title 24 energy compliance documentation.
PE Stamp: California-licensed PE reviewed and stamped structural and applicable MEP sheets.
Total: 6 business days. Delivered at $1,199.
The Result
LADBS accepted the application. Ministerial approval — no denial possible under AB 68 for a conforming project. Permit issued.
ADU rented at $2,400/month within 30 days of completion.
Tags: ADU · Garage Conversion · Los Angeles · LADBS · AB 68 · California · PE Stamp · Ministerial Approval
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