FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 28, 2026
Contact
Angela Herrera Perez, Senior Public Information Specialist
press@opportunity.lacounty.gov
LA County DEO Announces Inaugural Tenant of the LA County Launch Pad at Evermont in South LA
Nuna Behavioral Healthcare Becomes the First Launch Pad Tenant, Receiving Subsidized Space, Mentorship, and Access to Business Resources
Los Angeles, CA — The Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), in partnership with Second District Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell and Primestor Development LLC, proudly opens the LA County Launch Pad to the public and welcomes its first tenant, Nuna Behavioral Healthcare. LA County Launch Pad is a small business accelerator offering subsidized commercial space to local entrepreneurs accessing their first brick-and-mortar. It is located at the Evermont campus underway in South Los Angeles at 8492 S. Vermont Ave, Suite 1, Los Angeles, CA 90044.
Located at the soon-to-be completed Evermont mixed-use development in South Los Angeles, the Launch Pad at Evermont welcomed Nuna Behavioral Healthcare as its inaugural tenant in August 2025. Selected through an open application process with more than 300 interested tenants, Nuna brings trauma-informed, culturally responsive mental health services to a community historically underserved by traditional healthcare systems. The County, Primestor, and Nuna celebrated the LA County Launch Pad space with a soft opening on January 28th, highlighting the accelerator and business to local partners and residents. The public can learn about Nuna by visiting its new location at Evermont or visiting www.nunabehavioralhealthcare.com.
Established through a 2022 motion by the Board of Supervisors, the LA County Launch Pad was designed to embed community-serving businesses within new County-supported development projects. The Evermont site remained vacant since the 1992 LA civil uprising until the County aquired it in 2017. Since then, community partners—including Bridge Housing, the Coalition for Responsible Community Development, and Primestor Development—engaged local stakeholders to shape a shared vision for the site. The name “Evermont” was selected by the community to honor South LA’s legacy and future.
The site will soon be 180 affordable housing units including 118 family units and 62 senior units and 5 retail spaces, which include Nuna Behavioral Health, an essential service intended to support and uplifts the surrounding neighborhood.
Through LA County Launch Pad, DEO provides accepted businesses up to 24 months of rent support and wraparound assistance to help small businesses stabilize, grow, and eventually transition into their own long-term commercial spaces. Accepted businesses will also work closely with DEO’s Office of Small Business, who will offer its Small Business Concierge, County certification and contracting, and no-cost legal aid and capital access with partners throughout its tenure, including pathways to permanent locations in the local area. The LA County Launch Pad also offers community meeting space for Nuna and other residents, businesses, and community-based organizations to engage with future Evermont residents and surrounding neighbors.
“I am proud to announce the official opening of Nuna Behavioral Health as the first business to be incubated through LA County’s Launchpad – a key component of our Economic Mobility Initiative that provides free rent and support to new community serving businesses so they can grow, test innovation, and eventually launch into the community. The culturally affirming and empowering therapy Nuna Behavioral Health provides, with a focus on serving Black, Indigenous, Latine and queer individuals in our district is a needed and welcomed asset on the Vermont corridor. I cannot wait to see how the business will grow and serve residents,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell.
“This marks a major milestone in our commitment to inclusive economic development,” said Kelly LoBianco, Director of the Department of Economic Opportunity. “LA County Launch Pad ensures that the future of LA County includes our local entrepreneurs and small businesses — not just in name, but in access, visibility, and impact. We are creating space for local businesses to start-up and grow, a major priority for the community who worked with the County and developer team to vision the Evermont campus.”
“This moment is about more than opening a door — it’s about creating spaces that offer hope and possibility for a community that has waited a long time to be seen,” said Leandro Tyberg, President and Co-Founder of Primestor Development.“Welcoming Nuna Behavioral Healthcare as the first Launch Pad tenant means that this site is finally doing what it was always meant to do: serve the community with dignity, care, and opportunity.”
The Launch Pad model is part of DEO’s broader mission and vision to reduce early barriers to business ownership, strengthen local economies, and ensure LA County’s investments are deeply rooted in community benefit.
Learn more about the LA County Launch Pad program, including connection to Nuna and community space at: opportunity.lacounty.gov/la-county-launch-pad/
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About DEO: About DEO: The LA County Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) has a vision for a more equitable economy with thriving communities, inclusive and sustainable growth, and opportunity and mobility for all. The department, with its America’s Job Centers of California, Office of Small Business, and hundreds of programs and partners, creates quality jobs, helps small businesses and high-road employers start and grow, and builds vibrant communities and spaces. Stay connected with DEO! Follow @EconOppLA on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, subscribe to our newsletter, or visit opportunity.lacounty.gov to learn about DEO services.