Pfeiffer has been working with the Self Realization Fellowship since 2008 on campus improvements and the future rehabilitation of the 1909 International Headquarters Buildings, the centerpiece of the 12.5-acre campus at the top of Mount Washington in Los Angeles. The project began with a planning effort to properly document all buildings on the 12.5-acre site, in order to repair relationships with both the neighborhood and the Building Department. With the concept of being an “open book,” neighborhood meetings were held so that the community was aware of the future impacts of the upcoming project.
Considered a pilgrimage site for the organization due to its significance and artifacts held on site, a large component of the program includes museum spaces. Still in development, the museum will occupy the main level of the five-story building with the goal of the entire facility eventually becoming a museum. In addition to the display of artifacts, there is a suite on the third floor of the building that is a shrine to the organization’s founder who was in residence until he passed away. During the rehabilitation process, his suite will continue to be preserved exactly as it was on the day he passed away and has the highest level of conservation possible.

Project Data

Active
35,000 sf

Program & Highlights

Headquarters Office
Museum
Listed on the National and California Register of Historic Buildings
Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument

Collaborators

Civil Engineer: Psomas
Structural Engineer: Structural Focus
MEP Engineer: M-E Engineers, Inc.
Landscape Architect: Pamela Burton & Company
Lighting Design: Luminesce Design
AV Consultant: Multi-Media Consulting, Inc.