Burbank Remodeling Contractor works throughout Glendale, California, a city of roughly 190,000 people sitting three miles east of Burbank across the Verdugo wash. It is close enough that our crews are on site by seven, and different enough in its permitting and its housing stock that it is worth explaining how we approach it.
The most important practical difference: Glendale runs its own Building and Safety division and its own plan check. It is not Los Angeles and it is not Burbank. It also maintains its own register of historic resources and several designated historic districts, which means a project that would be routine three miles west can require design review here. Call (747) 330-0305 and we will tell you which category your house falls into.
Remodeling Period Revival Homes in Rossmoyne
Rossmoyne is the largest historic district in Glendale, roughly 503 homes developed starting in 1923 and largely finished by 1950. It is dense with Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival and French Revival houses, and it is the neighborhood where our carpentry background earns its keep.
Work on the street elevation of a house here goes through the city's historic district design review, which means window replacement, stucco changes, roof material and entry alterations are all subject to review rather than being purely your decision. Interior work is generally far less constrained. In practice the good projects here are the ones that leave the front of the house alone and put the money into the kitchen, the bathrooms and the rear, where a rear addition can transform how the house lives without touching what makes it protected.
Adams Hill, Verdugo Woodlands and Glendale's Hillside Streets
Adams Hill, up near Adams Square, is an eclectic pocket where homes went up between 1915 and 1960: Spanish, Tudor, Craftsman and Mid-Century Modern mixed together on steep, narrow streets. Verdugo Woodlands and Whiting Woods run up into the foothills with mature oak canopy and larger lots.
On these streets the practical constraints are access and foundations before they are anything else. A tight hillside street with no staging area changes how material reaches the site and what a concrete pour costs. Slope also means retaining, drainage and frequently a foundation carried on piers. We scope all of that at the walkthrough rather than after the contract.
Craftsman Houses and What Is Behind the Walls
Glendale's Craftsman stock, concentrated in Adams Hill, Somerset, Woodbury and parts of Rossmoyne, dates from roughly 1900 to 1925. That construction era comes with a predictable set of findings: lath and plaster over old-growth framing, knob-and-tube wiring, galvanized supply lines, a raised foundation that was never bolted, and original wood windows that are usually worth restoring rather than replacing.
None of that is a problem, and all of it belongs in the budget from the beginning. A remodel of a 1915 Glendale bungalow that has not accounted for a rewire, a repipe and foundation bolting is a remodel that is going to grow by a third.
What We Build in Glendale
- Whole-house remodels of Period Revival and Craftsman homes, keeping the original character on the street elevation
- Rear additions and primary suites where the front of the house is protected by district review
- Detached and garage conversion ADUs on Glendale's deeper lots
- Hillside additions and foundation work in Adams Hill and the Verdugo Woodlands
- Rewires, repipes and seismic bolting on pre-1930 housing stock
- Kitchen and bathroom gut remodels with structural layout changes
Talk to a Burbank general contractor about your project
Tell us what you have in mind and we will give you a straight answer on scope, permits, timeline and price.
Call (747) 330-0305Frequently asked questions
Does Glendale handle its own permits?
Yes. Glendale has its own Community Development department with its own Building and Safety division, plan check and inspectors. It is a separate jurisdiction from both Burbank and the City of Los Angeles, with its own submittal process and its own fee schedule, and we work in it regularly.
How do I know if my Glendale home is in a historic district?
The city maintains designated historic districts and a register of historic resources, and the status is tied to your specific address. Rossmoyne is the largest district but it is not the only one. We check the designation before design work starts, because it determines whether the exterior scope needs design review and how long the approval will take.
Can I still remodel a house in Rossmoyne?
Yes. Historic district status governs exterior alterations visible from the street, not the whole house. Kitchens, bathrooms, interior layout changes and rear additions are generally achievable. Window replacement, stucco changes and front elevation work are where the review applies, and there are usually approaches that satisfy it.
How far is Glendale from your Burbank base?
About three miles, ten minutes on Glenoaks or the 134. It is the closest city to us outside Burbank, which means crews arrive on time, material deliveries are simple and we can get to the site quickly when something needs a decision.