Meet the Westchester Team Behind Ellery ADU Studio Westchester
We’re the crew that shows up to your property in Westchester, Playa del Rey, or Ladera Heights with a permit set in hand and a camera on every belt. Nadia Ellery built this studio in 2015 around a simple idea: the person who measures your garage should be able to read the structural calcs, too. No handoffs, no “the other guy handles that.” One contract, one written price, one team that stays with your ADU from first sketch to final inspection.
Our People
Nadia Ellery, Owner & Lead Designer
I started Ellery ADU Studio in 2015 after watching three consecutive clients get stranded between an architect who wouldn’t take calls and a builder who said the drawings “weren’t buildable.” That gap costs people six months and fifteen thousand dollars, minimum. I hold a California B-General Contractor license and spent my first four years in the field before I ever stamped a drawing. These days I split my time between permit strategy - I know which plans examiner at LADBS will flag a 4-foot side-yard setback versus a 3-foot - and making sure our written quotes under Haven Standard Clause 1 actually include everything, including the sewer lateral video we both know we’ll need. I live in Westchester with two rescue dogs who have zero respect for my drafting schedule. You’ll see me on-site at rough framing and final walkthrough; I don’t delegate those.
Marcus T., Senior Installer & Prefab Systems Lead
Marcus joined us in 2019 after eight years installing modular classrooms for LAUSD, which means he’s seen a crane set a unit onto a foundation in a 40-foot-wide alley without scratching the neighbor’s stucco. He runs our prefab and modular coordination - Abodu, Cover, Dvele, Mighty Buildings, Boxabl, Plant Prefab, Tuff Shed, James Hardie - and he’s the reason our site prep crews know the difference between a Boxabl foundation pad and a standard stem wall before concrete gets ordered. Marcus is OSHA-30 certified and keeps a notebook of every crane operator he’s worked with in Southern California, rated by how carefully they handle a unit near power lines. Off-hours he restores vintage motorcycles and will absolutely tell you why your garage slab needs a moisture barrier if you’re storing one.
Dana K., Service Coordinator & Permit Navigator
Dana handles the calls that come in at 10 PM from someone who just read that ADU law changed again and now they’re not sure their project is legal. She’s been with us since 2021 and knows the LADBS ADU standard plan program better than most plan checkers - she can tell you whether your property qualifies for the streamlined process or if you’re headed to a full discretionary review before we ever measure your lot. Dana coordinates our documented photo record system: every visit, every finding, every completed task gets uploaded to your project folder within two hours. She grew up in Inglewood and still lives there, which means she gives realistic timeline estimates based on actual LADBS backlog, not what the website claims. She also bakes sourdough that Marcus uses to bribe inspectors during polite, entirely appropriate professional interactions.
Javier R., Apprentice Installer & Utilities Specialist
Javier came to us in 2023 through a community construction program in Westchester and is finishing his electrical trainee hours while working full-time on our crew. He specializes in utility tie-ins - sewer lateral connections, electrical service upgrades, gas line extensions - the work that happens underground and behind walls where homeowners can’t see it. Javier’s the one who pulls the permit for your electrical panel upgrade and then installs it, so there’s no gap between what was approved and what got built. He’s already passed his C-10 electrical trainee certification and is studying for his B-license. On weekends he coaches youth soccer at Westchester Park and has developed an uncanny ability to explain voltage drop to parents who just wanted to know why the snack schedule changed.
One Standard, Every Job
Every person on this crew works under the same Haven Standard that governs all ten Ellery ADU Studio locations across California. That means Nadia’s written price guarantee applies whether you’re converting a garage in Westchester or building a new detached unit in Ladera Heights. It means Javier’s photo documentation and Dana’s permit navigation follow identical protocols. It means Marcus’s prefab coordination draws from the same manufacturer relationships and lessons-learned database. The Haven Standard isn’t a suggestion we read at orientation - it’s Clause 1 (written price before work starts), Clause 5 (no scope creep), and the 365-Day Done Right Promise, all in writing, on every contract. When you call (213) 698-7591, you reach a live person at any hour because Dana’s rotation includes after-hours coverage and because we know permit anxiety doesn’t follow business hours. We’ve designed, permitted, and built over 900 ADUs since 2015, and every one of them started with a written price and ended with a documented photo record. That’s not marketing language. That’s the scope of work.
Written by Nadia Ellery, Owner at Ellery ADU Studio Westchester, serving Westchester, Playa del Rey, Ladera Heights, and surrounding Los Angeles communities since 2015.