Uncommon Developers is positioning its mixed-use and multifamily portfolio around a community-building mission, with co-founder Ryan Hekmat emphasizing that the firm aims to drive job creation alongside housing delivery. He told Connect CRE that the company seeks to strengthen surrounding neighborhoods economically and socially through its projects, with an emphasis on housing, opportunity, public spaces, and experiences that enhance quality of life.
Hekmat is scheduled to speak on the “Development: Block by Block, Project by Project” panel at Connect CRE Los Angeles 2026 at the Intercontinental Los Angeles Downtown. Ahead of the event, he outlined how Uncommon Developers uses its vertically integrated model to manage acquisition, entitlement, design, construction, and property management in-house. The platform is focused on an LA-area portfolio that includes multifamily, mixed-use, and large-scale development projects.
The 24 in Chatsworth illustrates the company’s approach. Developed on the site of a former Los Angeles Times printing facility, the 24-acre campus devotes nearly five acres to outdoor living, according to Hekmat. Amenities include dog parks, a community garden, four pools, walking paths, basketball and pickleball courts, a citrus grove, an outdoor movie theater, and large community green spaces intended to encourage residents and neighbors to gather and connect.
The company is also working to introduce on-site services that extend the campus’s live-work-play offering. Hekmat said Uncommon Developers is currently planning an on-campus preschool at The 24 to create what he described as a one-of-a-kind environment where residents can live, work, play, and grow in a single community setting.
In addition to outdoor features, The 24 includes interior spaces aimed at supporting modern work patterns and collaboration. The property offers dedicated work lounges, conference rooms, and reservable event spaces designed to accommodate productivity and community events, integrating work, social, and residential functions within the same development.
Hekmat also highlighted the ongoing challenges of navigating the entitlement and approval process, even as city and state governments attempt to streamline procedures. He cited red tape and lack of coordination as key friction points and pointed to unstable fee schedules, including impact and school fees, as a particular risk. He noted that even a seemingly small change in per-square-foot school fees can undermine project underwriting, and he stressed that stability in these costs is essential for a development’s feasibility.
Despite these headwinds, Hekmat said Uncommon Developers views current market turmoil as an opening to expand. He referenced the difficulty in financing many projects and volatility in local and state codes as conditions that can create opportunities for disciplined, vertically integrated developers. The firm’s use of modular construction is intended to help it maintain a cost basis that remains viable even when the broader development environment is unsettled.
Connect Los Angeles 2026 will bring together owners, investors, developers, brokers, and lenders for a day of market discussion and networking, with Hekmat’s panel providing additional context on how developers like Uncommon Developers are adjusting their strategies within this evolving landscape.
