Commercial Design
Commercial Tenant
Improvement in Los Angeles
Design 1 Studio designs commercial tenant improvements across Los Angeles County for restaurants, retail spaces, offices, medical facilities, and industrial spaces. We prepare complete, permit-ready construction documents that meet code requirements and reflect your brand identity — the same thorough, code-first approach we bring to our residential work.
What Makes Commercial TI Challenging
What makes commercial TI projects challenging isn’t usually the design. It’s the code. Commercial buildings are governed by a different set of requirements than residential:
Occupancy classification and occupant load calculations that determine exiting, restroom counts, and fire protection systems.
ADA accessibility — accessible paths of travel, restroom clearances, counter heights, and parking.
Health department requirements for food service — ventilation, grease interceptors, food prep surfaces, handwashing stations.
Fire department requirements — suppression systems, alarm systems, emergency access.
Commercial Title 24 energy code compliance.
Change of occupancy when the new use differs from the previous tenant — this can trigger significant building upgrades beyond the interior design.
A restaurant moving into a space that was previously retail triggers a change of occupancy that can require upgrades costing tens of thousands of dollars. Understanding these triggers before signing a lease saves money.
Types of Projects We Handle
Restaurants & Food Service
Full-service restaurants, fast casual, cafes, bakeries, commissary kitchens. Architectural design, kitchen consultant coordination, health department requirements, and plans that satisfy both building and health departments.
Retail
Stores, showrooms, salons, and service businesses. Retail environments that work for your operations while meeting code for accessibility, exiting, and fire safety.
Offices
Private offices, open floor plans, co-working spaces, and medical offices. Space planning, accessibility compliance, and specific code requirements for professional and medical occupancies.
Industrial & Warehouse
Light manufacturing, distribution, and storage. These often involve change of occupancy issues and specific code requirements for industrial uses.
Why Code Knowledge Matters for Commercial
Commercial projects interact with more regulatory bodies than residential ones. A restaurant TI may require approvals from the building department, health department, fire department, and potentially planning if the use requires a conditional use permit.
Designers who primarily work residential and dabble in commercial often miss these layers. Plans that pass the building department get stopped by the health department, or designs don’t account for fire protection upgrades triggered by a change of occupancy.
We design commercial projects with awareness of all the regulatory layers from the start. The plans we submit are prepared to satisfy every applicable reviewing agency.
Our Commercial Design Process
01 Review existing space conditions, proposed use, and all applicable code requirements before beginning design
02 Identify change-of-occupancy triggers, ADA requirements, and health/fire department provisions
03 Design within the verified code framework — avoiding costly corrections from code conflicts discovered later
04 Complete construction documents and coordination with all required consultants
05 Submit plans and handle plan check through permit issuance
Start Your Alhambra Project
Free consultation. We’ll evaluate your property, discuss feasibility, and give you a clear picture of timeline and cost. No pressure, no obligation.