Questions about Santa Monica house, answered in the words of the people who did the work. The engagement itself is on its own page.
How close to the original completion target did the home finish?
From memory, it was a 14-month build, and we finished about a month and a half early. Timing helped. The trades were not all selected yet when COVID hit. Our main trade, framing and concrete on a heavy concrete project, had a good relationship with us. Because we were not in contracts with the rest yet, we only hired trades we knew were going to keep working through COVID. On other projects, if one trade stopped, the whole job was stuck. Here we could pick companies that were still functioning, and people were really happy to have the work.
How were the subcontractors who would keep working through COVID identified?
Mostly, whether they were still working. That sounds obvious, but in the spring of 2020 it was the only test that mattered. Most of these subs were relationships built over years, so we knew who was actually running crews and who had gone quiet. The signal was simple. A sub that kept confirming dates was working. One that stopped confirming, without ever saying no, was not. We only brought in companies we knew were functioning. And people were really happy to have the work, so the ones still running showed up.