Time Well Spent with Environ's Barbara Hordyk

This month we celebrate Environ's Project Designer Barbara Hordyk, who has been with the company for ten years.

Barbara's talent for design first showed itself in high school, when her mom gave her a budget to redecorate her room. Though she loved the experience so much that she came away feeling this could be her career, she opted to study International Business in college. But after a couple years, she yearned for a more creative experience. Recalling the feeling she got from redecorating her room, she changed her major to Interior Design.

Environ originally learned of Barbara through Alan's wife, who worked with her at the Getty Center. After the project at the Getty Center was complete, Barbara took time off to raise two boys. When she was ready to return to the industry, Environ happened to be looking to hire another associate for its Interiors Department. Perfect timing.

Barbara maintains her credential with the National Council for Interior Design Certification. The certification requires three exams that test one's knowledge of theory, principles of design, building codes, project management and running a business.

As Barbara says, "There's more to it than just picking pretty colors."

Spring 2016 Newsletter

COMPLETE: TENANT IMPROVEMENT  FOR CRC-VENTURA Our client California Resources Corporation recently moved into their fresh offices in Ventura, CA. The new space now serves as a consolidated facility bringing multiple departments and disciplines together.  Improvements included glass entry doors, new finishes, playful pendant lights and blue accent walls.  Previously a maze of high panels, Environ's Willetta McCulloh and Barbara Hordyk worked with the client to achieve a more modern and open look.

Hats Off to Environ's Aimee Mandala!

Aimee Mandala sits below Environ's mission statement in the reception area of its downtown Long Beach office. It's an apt place for this eight-year employee, as she embraces the company's philosophy in everything she does as Environ's Director of Operations.


In college Aimee studied English and creative writing, never imagining she would end up in a position like the one she holds today. But coming from four generations of architects whose work stretches back to the 1800s, it seems unsurprising that Aimee wound up in the same field. 

As a child, she and her siblings tagged along to work with their father to his architectural office above the famed Bake 'n Broil in Bixby Knolls. It's a formative experience that took hold: her sister is an architect, while her brother is a BIM manager for a construction company. During college Aimee waited tables at Bake-N-Broil, and post-grad she worked for a prominent property management firm in Orange County, but found herself yearning for something more. In 2007, it clicked. Aimee's enthusiasm and excitement for the architectural profession was clear, and she decided she needed to be a part of it.  

MHALA partners with Environ, Inc. to relocate programs, their corporate offices and revitalize Long Beach Boulevard

Mental Health America of Los Angeles (MHA) is working with Environ Architecture to expand and relocate their Downtown Long Beach facilities to 1955-1965 Long Beach Boulevard. The urban revitalization project was prompted by the agreement between the City of Long Beach and MHA which provided MHA with the two multi-level buildings where they will locate their administrative offices, a primary health care clinic, a drop-in service center and a community room. Also planned is a coffee shop and restaurant featuring street side dining, bringing new life and activity to the Long Beach Boulevard corridor.

Architect and President of Environ Architecture, Alan Burks states, “This is an investment in a part of Long Beach that has been ignored for too long.” Burks goes on to say, “We enjoy working with organizations which focus on improving the community and serving the people who live there.” Coincidentally, Environ worked on the interiors of the Social Security Administration building at 2001 Long Beach Boulevard back in 2003 and is currently working with the owner of 1975 Long Beach Boulevard to renovate that building as well. “It will be a true pleasure to see these buildings come alive again and thrive in their communities.”

Environ competes in CANstruction 2015

Yay TEAM ENVIRON / CRC!!!

2015 marked the first year Environ participated in the famed CANstruction competition. Organized by Terri Henry Marketing, the contest recruits engineering and design firms who are asked to create structures entirely out of canned food. Awards are given for Best Use of Labels, Best Meal, Structural Ingenuity, Jurors' Favorite, People's Choice and Honorable Mention.

Though our competition was tough - other firms included MHP/P2S, Moffatt & Nichol, SCS Engineers and c|a Architects - we were up for the challenge. 

First things first, we needed a design. This year's theme was "Breakfast CAN make a difference." Emails were exchanged, brainstorming sessions were had, and ideas sprouted. We put our collective thinking hats on, and

"Oh, tHe thiNks yOu Can thiNk!"

Life Takes Shape, with Environ's Lety Mimila

July 18, 2015 marked the ten-year anniversary of Environ Senior Architect Leticia Mimila. To celebrate this milestone, we sat down with the tenured employee for a conversation about what makes her tick.

It all started with shapes. As a child, Lety was chosen to attend a special program for a select group of students who were bused across Long Beach to receive an advanced curriculum. In middle school she was inspired by an exercise in 3D. The more complex the shapes became, the more excitedly she welcomed the challenge. The final assignment was the design of a house, and her path to pursuing architecture was born.

Having grown up in an impoverished neighborhood, Lety struggled to fit in with her less ambitious peers. Sometimes she even found herself hiding her scholastic achievements from friends. This, however, did not keep her from staying the course to prove to certain elders that she would overcome the stereotype of a life that often results from a low-income, single-parent home. The low expectations that some adults in her life had only made her more determined to become the successful, independent woman she is today.

Finding Inspiration in a Crumpled Piece of Paper

As designers, we are often asked what inspires us. It is a broad question and can render many answers. When an idea arises, it can be from the culmination of a series of events, or even a single random experience. What inspires us is forever changing, as it should be.

With the daily grind of drafting and modeling, sometimes the “why” is lost.  As much as routine is comforting, do you ever have a day when something happens that shakes you out of the expected? And even if it interrupts your flow, somehow you’re energized?

Finding inspiration in the unexpected or mundane is something we need to be reminded of, and when we need a little boost, we return to this video from time to time: