West Hollywood approves design for log cabin renovation

California Construction News staff writer

The City of West Hollywood has released design renderings for the historic Log Cabin building renovation. The site houses the West Hollywood Recovery Center (WHRC) on N. Robertson Boulevard.

Council approved the design concept at the end of March and more information is available on the project website: https://go.weho.org/logcabin.

Through a competitive RFQ process, Lehrer Architects LA,Inc. was selected as one of four bench to assist with on-call architectural and urban design services. In May 2022, the city council asked Lehrer to begin the programming, pre-design, and refurbishment process.

Lehrer was recommended by the city architect as the best fit from the bench of contractors for the Log Cabin project based on their experience with historic preservation and connection to the recovery community. More than $7.5 million in funding has been provided.

With the design concept approved, the city will take the next steps to move toward construction, which is expected to begin in October and be completed by December 2025.

Construction will include:

• Expanded meeting rooms, food preparation areas, and storage capacity to support local recovery services;

• New mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, which help to contribute to an enhanced onsite experience;

• ADA-compliant bathrooms;

• Improved streetscape and landscaping; and

• New electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and solar panels.

The Log Cabin building was built on property purchased in 1928 by the City of Beverly Hills. The north portion of the property was leased to the Lions Club in 1936, which constructed the Log Cabin in its style as a Boy Scouts of America (BSA) clubhouse.

In the early 1970s, the Lions Club subleased the building to the West Hollywood Recovery Center for use for addiction recovery group meetings such as Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.