Kimberlina Whettam: Turning red tape into green lights

Written By Jan Brzeski

Kimberlina Whettam is a seasoned real estate development leader with a proven track record guiding projects from concept through completion. She specializes in due diligence research, entitlement management, public hearings, and development permits, leveraging her strong government and industry relationships to secure timely, cost-effective approvals. Previously, she served as Chief Planning & Environmental Deputy for Los Angeles City Councilmember Jack Weiss, where she launched the city’s Green Building Incentive Program and secured community support for the Van Nuys Airport Masterplan. Kimberlina’s company, Kimberlina Whettam & Associates (KW&A), is managing several projects in the fire zones.

In this episode, Jan and Kimberlina discuss:

  • The role of permit expediting and land use consulting in LA development

  • How executive orders changed rebuilding timelines after the fires

  • The challenges of non-conforming structures and rebuilding policies

  • Shifts in development activity, tariff and cost implications, and investment trends across LA

Key Takeaways: 

  • Ministerial approvals now make the permit process much faster than before.

  • Policies were updated so homeowners can rebuild their non-conforming houses without losing what they had.

  • Unlike single-family homes, commercial projects have not yet been granted the same streamlined path.

  • Development has slowed in LA due to several factors, like homeowner sentiment, environmental concern, and new policies affecting developers, among others.

“I feel really confident that this is happening and it will happen, and to get in the game, to get in there and start pushing, push, push, push, all of us pushing. It's gonna happen. We put a man on the moon. We can do this.” - Kimberlina Whettam

Connect with Kimberlina Whettam:

Website: https://www.kwhettam.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimberlina-whettam-174b05205/ 

Resources & Contacts:

Christopher Carlin christopher@mgmtpartners.com  & Christopher@carlinprojects.com 

Case Study 2.0: XTEN Architecture Scott Utterstrom sutterstrom@xtenarchitecture.com 

Connect with Jan Brzeski:

Website: https://scipfinance.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jbrzeski/ 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RebuildingLAafterthefires

Email: pr@scipfinance.com 

Show notes by Podcastologist: Angelo Paul Tagama

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

Jan Brzeski
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Randy Balik: Remediation, risks, and the road to recovery