Commercial Locksmith in Los Angeles, CA

Mixed-use buildings, many key holders

Some Los Angeles commercial buildings were built for one use and now serve several, which can leave a single door with more than one party who cares about its lock.

• South Broadway. From Second Street to Olympic Boulevard, the Broadway Theater and Commercial District is on the National Register and has twelve theaters built from 1910 to 1931. Almost all of its department store buildings were converted to offices or housing, so one address can have a storefront, a residential lobby and a service door, each possibly controlled by a different party.
• Arts District. The district grew around warehouses built for citrus shipping, and many industrial buildings there are now live/work lofts. A business here may share entrances with people who live in the building, so a lock change on a shared door affects more than one tenant.

Before changing a lock on any door you share, check the lease to see who owns the hardware and who must approve the work.

Code minimums for business doors

Minimum security standards for openings in Group B, F, M, S and R occupancies come from Chapter 67 of the city's building code. Ask the building owner or manager which group your space falls in, and check any new storefront, office or service-door hardware against the chapter. This is general information, not legal advice.

Keys and staff turnover

Every departing employee or outgoing tenant is a key you may never see again. A written key log, a short list of who holds the main-entrance key and a rekey when a key goes missing or someone leaves on bad terms all help. In a building like the South Broadway ones above, the log should note which of the storefront, lobby and service doors each key opens.

What a business request should say

California Locksmith Pros takes service requests from homes, businesses and drivers in Los Angeles. For a business request, include the type of business, the building and its cross streets, the doors involved (glass storefront, office suite door, rear service door), how many people hold keys, and whether a landlord or property manager has to sign off. Service details are at commercial locksmith, and Los Angeles describes other neighborhoods.