2009-09-09 19:40:44 - Recreation center was burned to the ground during the disaster responsible for the biggest loss of homes due to fire in City of Los Angeles history

Signs of rebirth are becoming more evident at the Oakridge Mobile Home Park, the community decimated last November by the Sylmar Fire in the City of Los Angeles. Construction is expected to start soon on a $2.5 million community center designed by San Diego-based Domusstudio Architecture (www.domusstudio.com).

“After all these months of debris removal and cleanup, we are really looking forward to starting construction of our new community center,” said Myron Reichert, Managing General Partner of Continental Mobile Housing. With offices in Fullerton and San Diego, Continental Mobile Housing is general partner of the limited partnership Oakridge Ltd., owners of the manufactured home community in the San Fernando Valley.

“The new community center will be a big boost to the community,” Reichert

continued. “Beautifully designed and luxuriously appointed with a fully equipped gym, therapy pools, a large swimming pool and other features, the center is something Oakridge residents will use every day. I know the residents will really like what is coming, because it is even better than what was there before.”

Imaginatively designed by Domusstudio Architecture to fit the footprint of the slab that survived the Nov. 14-15 fire, the new 16,000-sqare-foot center will include a media room, library, card room, billiards, meeting room, conference room and assembly hall. In addition to the gym, pools and spas, the property features tennis and paddle tennis courts as well. As it was prior to the fire, the community center will be surrounded by manicured lawns and well-maintained landscaping.

“The new Oakridge Community Center will incorporate everything it had before, but in a better context,” Reichert said. “Domusstudio Architecture came up with a great layout using the same footprint so that the usable spaces will be larger and the assembly spaces will be much more user friendly.”

The exterior of the new building reflects a timeless design style, according to Domusstudio Architecture’s Associate David Keitel.

“With its red tile roof, arched entry and distinctive tower, the design follows both a simplistic Santa Barbara style and a style reminiscent of historically praised architect Lillian Rice,” said Keitel. “It was a tremendously exciting challenge to build on the existing slab and create a new modern facility out of that constraint. We look forward to celebrating the day this community amenity opens its doors again to the Oakridge community.”

According to Reichert, Domusstudio Architecture of San Diego was chosen for the project based on the 22-year-old company’s professionalism and quality designs.

“When we interviewed them we came away very impressed,” Reichert said. “Domusstudio is clearly very professional, sophisticated and comprehensive. We could tell they know what they are doing. We could see that in the long run they gave us the most economical way to go.”

Started as Dominy + Associates by principal Lew Dominy in 1986, Domusstudio Architecture specializes in religious facilities, fire stations, educational buildings, senior housing and custom residential projects throughout Southern California. Among the firm’s current projects is the Malibu Presbyterian Church, which also was devastated by fire recently. Another of the company’s projects is the Village Community Presbyterian Church in Rancho Santa Fe, a project Reichert has seen under construction for the past several months. Reichert also was aware of Lew Dominy by reputation. Reichert said he had heard stories of Dominy’s triangle-shaped residence in Del Mar, approval of which was hard-fought.

“I always admired whoever had the guts to stick with that project,” Reichert said. “Now I know with Domusstudio that we aren’t going to see any rookie mistakes and issues that haven’t been thought through. Already the approval process with the State of California has been more smooth than usual. A plan checker even told me he was very impressed with the plans.”

Expected to be completed in March by contractor Jacobs Development in Irvine, Reichert said the community center will be another positive indicator of Oakridge coming back to life. Though the ash and other hazardous debris have been cleared over the past six months, Reichert said there are still tens of thousands of tons of concrete and masonry debris on the property, which is being removed space by space.

By next spring the park will have many new homes and homeowners in place, but there will be many spaces still available for lease. For information about spaces and new homes available at Oakridge Mobile Home Park, please visit the sales office, 15455 Glenoaks Blvd., in Sylmar. Or call 818-367-1128. Information also is available at www.ProjectOakridge.com.

“The property is looking better every month,” Reichert said. “The fact that houses are coming in and people are moving back in and construction of the community center is getting started, these are all indications that it’s coming back to life.”

Having destroyed 480 of the 600 mobile home residences at Oakridge, plus nine single-family homes, 104 outbuildings and 10 commercial buildings, the Sylmar Fire, also known as the Sayre Fire, is considered the worst loss of homes due to fire in City of Los Angeles history.

According to a Wikipedia entry about the devastation at Oakridge Mobile Home Park, Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Steve Ruda described the scene as “an absolute firestorm” with 50-foot-high flames. “Hoses were melting into the cement and concrete,” Ruda is quoted as saying. “That’s how hot the fire was.”

The online encyclopedia tells about the dramatic rescue of several individuals from their homes in the pre-dawn hours of Nov. 15. Amazingly, the fire resulted in no injuries or fatalities.

Myron Reichert of Continental Mobile Housing learned about the devastating fire at the Oakridge Mobile Home Park while he was in Brea to attend the funeral services of a dear friend. The San Diego resident and his wife saw a news flash Nov. 14 and learned early the next morning that the park was nearly completely destroyed. The couple only a year ago had evacuated their San Diego home as the 2007 Witch Creek Fire threatened the area.

“We were so lucky that no one was killed,” Reichert said about Oakridge. “That was our first concern, of course. Then we had to decide how to go forward. After reviewing our most immediate options and talking to people in the City of Los Angeles, including Councilman Richard Alarcon, we decided to rebuild. Oakridge has always been considered an exemplary manufactured home community in the state of California, always held up as an example of what manufactured home living should be like. We wanted to re-create that. The residents loved it there and want to come back.”

Founded in 1986 as Dominy + Associates, Domusstudio Architecture strives to enhance the lives of people through architecture, interiors, planning and service. For more information about its projects and services, call 619-692-9393 or visit www.domusstudio.com.