Simi Valley

Suburban lots and foothill edges

Much of Simi Valley is comfortable suburban building — additions, remodels, and ADUs on regular lots. But the city is ringed by hills, and homes along those edges carry the usual slope considerations: grade, drainage, access, and how a design sits in the terrain rather than fighting it. The same hillside thinking that shapes Kevin's Los Angeles work applies directly here.

Building near the wildland edge

Foothill and canyon-adjacent properties around the region can fall within wildfire-interface areas, where material choices and defensible-space planning become part of the design conversation rather than an afterthought. Whether a given lot is affected — and what that means — is confirmed with the City of Simi Valley's building division (or Ventura County for unincorporated parcels) at the start of the project.

The full scope, under one process

Kevin Cohen Design is a design-build practice: architecture, interior and exterior design, and general construction coordinated together rather than split across separate contracts. That covers ADUs, home additions, whole-home remodels, kitchen and bath remodels, permit drawings and plan-check, and general construction — with a single point of accountability from the first sketch to the final inspection.

Working remotely, with visits as the project needs them

Most of the work — design, drawings, and coordination — is handled remotely, which is what lets the practice serve a region this large without thinning the attention any one project receives. On-site visits are scheduled when a project genuinely calls for them: reading the site at the start, checking key moments during construction, and resolving the things that are better seen in person. For many homeowners this is a practical way to work with an architect whose approach fits, regardless of where the lot sits.

Rules, zoning, and permit requirements differ from one jurisdiction to the next and change over time. Nothing here is a substitute for confirming the specifics for your exact address with the local building department early in the project — which is where every engagement starts, so the design is aimed at the right requirements from the first drawing.