MICHAEL LEVALLEY

Michael LeValley’s philosophy is simple: “Believe in what you do from the ground up.”  

Michael’s path has been an unconventional one. He has always had a love of the creative arts. As a high school student he was involved in theater, dance and music. He went to UCLA as a theater arts major but before graduating was offered a creative young man’s dream job; to be a part of the crew that was taking the creation of the Los Angeles Theatre Center from dream to reality. During these early years of Michael’s career he worked with many theater companies in all areas of technical production including set construction, sound and lighting, and began crewing large rock and roll shows running follow spot, and rigging large arena shows.

Michael’s interest in construction lead him to teach himself fine woodworking, to start his own custom furniture business, Sho Shin Woodworks, and work with a general contractor on high end remodeling.

When Michael’s first son was born he decided to take the opportunity to be a full time parent. It was a very rewarding yet unconventional choice for a man in 1995. With the birth of his second son Michael continued to focus on his family until 2002 when he had a clear idea of the next step on his path; the creation of a development company that could encompass all the principles he had come to believe were so important; good design, high quality, collaboration, community and earth-consciousness.

Michael’s first project with his visionary company, Live Oak Design Group (LODG), was the transformation of 7,500 square feet of warehouse space into 22 artist studios and an art gallery. The result has been a beautifully designed, light infused space, which houses a wonderful community of artists called Smith Ranch Studios.

LODG has gone on to transform a second San Rafael warehouse into an 11,000 square foot state of the art rehearsal and recording facility for musicians called Bay Area Sound Studios (BASS). BASS houses beautifully designed studios ranging in size from 100 to 2,000 square feet. Suitable for a variety of needs from the individual musician all the way up to a touring rock band, a full orchestra or a corporate event; each room is a pure sound environment.

LODG is now undertaking a very different project, the creation of Live Oak Estates; six fabulous estates on 30 beautiful acres of land in the hills of San Rafael with amazing views of Mt Tamalpais. The estates are being constructed with all of Michael’s principles intact; focus on design, collaboration with the best designers and earth-friendly green construction.

Michael lives with his wife, Sarah, and their two sons Jacob and Ethan. He enjoys hiking and camping with his family and solo retreats to the desert.