Michael J. Smith

We hired Mike Smith as a GC for a complex and challenging recording studio project, and he came through par excellence. He was creative, energetic, thoughtful, conscientious, and trustworthy. In addition to executing the architectural and acoustical plans of the studio, he handled the outdoor hardscaping, followed by a major kitchen and front-room remodel in our house. His knowledge of construction codes and methods is outstanding, he’s quite resourceful, his crew members and subcontractors are wonderful, and he’s a pleasure to work with.

I first met Michael Smith over 6 years ago, and worked with him on a studio project in the Mar Vista area of L.A. Ever since, I have done my best to bring him into every appropriate project that I've been involved with, as he has what it takes to make those projects succeed. Namely, he brings sharp solutions to complex problems, he is meticulous toward detail while keeping overall goals and constraints of time and funds in the fore, he has the people skills to deal effectively with all types of characters and situations, he can adapt quickly to changing circumstances, and he is fun to be around. If Mike believes he is a good fit for a given project, I recommend him as GC without reservation. The Mar Vista project consisted of a studio for a film score composer, with a dance studio for his wife, directly above. While this situation should generally be avoided, space constraints left us without alternatives, so we employed the gold standard of acoustic isolation -- a double shell building, which is essentially a building within a building -- to prevent vibrations from the dance studio from reaching the recording space. The owners have been extremely happy with the results. Recording space for artists (one of Mike's specialties) are not only technically involved, finely tuned instruments, but when situated at a residence, also must be designed and built with the same emphasis on detail, craftsmanship, and comfort which are required at a high-end custom home. This made Mike the perfect fit for the project, as he and his crew are attuned to both technical and aesthetic detail. During this project, Mike used his expertise in dealing with the city's permitting process to streamline the approval of the project. While this would typically fall under the architect's scope of work, Mike saw a solution to a problem that I was not aware of, and this saved the owner considerable time and expense. More recently, Mike and I have been working on a 5,000 s.f. custom home in Brentwood, which is currently in the plan check stage. the house will sit on a hillside site where a landslide occurred in past decades. This adds complexity to the earthwork, retaining walls, and concrete foundation system, as additional piles and casons are required to stabilize the hillside against future slippage. Mike has been invaluable in estimating the cost of this work so that the project as a whole can be kept within the owner's budget. Michael works extremely hard, is deeply involved in the details of every project he takes on, and prioritizes the success of the project. He's not afraid of challenges and complexity, and can think outside of the proverbial box. Every project includes hicups and surprises, and Mike's accommodating spirit helps resolve issues quickly. I recommend him wholeheartedly.

We were stalled out on our bathroom remodel for about a year until we found Mike. Referred contractors were either bidding too high or nonresponsive. Mike and team were doing remodel work for our neighbors across the street, and we noticed he actually showed up on a daily basis, and he appeared to have a congenial relationship with his subs. Our neighbors spoke very highly of him, so we asked him to bid. He showed up on time for the first appointment, was courteous and humble, and timely submitted his bid which was in the middle of the range. We had done two other large remodel projects in the past, and Mike outperformed the other two contractors and both exceeded our expectations in quality and professionalism, and was hands down the best contractor we have dealt with. Highly recommend, have referred him to friends and colleagues, and will be using him on future projects.