David Macales; Engineer, Custom-Home Builder

David Macales, an engineer and custom-home builder whose luxury creations dotted the San Fernando Valley during the 1950s and ‘60s, has died. He was 69.

A longtime Northridge resident, Macales died Wednesday of cancer at Northridge Hospital Medical Center, said his son Richard Macales.

After working briefly as an engineer for Hughes Aircraft, Macales built his first home in Ladera Heights in 1953. According to his son, he formed a business under the name David MacAles and built luxury houses and apartments in affluent areas of Encino, Sherman Oaks and Granada Hills. Macales’ clients typically were prominent figures in business and entertainment, his son said.

“His homes were very elegant,” Richard Macales recalled Friday, explaining that they were noted for their “exquisite architecture and craftsmanship.”

At the end of the 1960s, Macales resumed his engineering career, designing stereo components for Marantz and later working in the aerospace industry. He retired in the early 1980s.

A lifelong amateur photographer and astronomer, Macales was also an active philanthropist on behalf of Israel. In 1983, he was one of the founders of Young Israel of Northridge, the first Orthodox synagogue in the north Valley.

Born in Cleveland to Orthodox Jewish immigrants from Russia, Macales settled in Los Angeles after serving two years as a U.S. Army Air Corps bombardier during World War II. He was trained as an engineer at Northrop Aeronautical Institute.

In addition to his son Richard, Macales is survived by his wife of 43 years, Patricia Macales; two other sons, Jack Macales of Rehovot, Israel, and Jeffery Macales of Northridge; and 13 grandchildren.

Services were held under the direction of Sholom Chapel in Los Angeles. Macales was buried Thursday at Mount Olive Memorial Park in Commerce.

Memorial donations may be made to Young Israel of Northridge, 17511 Devonshire St., Northridge 91325 or to the Aish HaTorah Institute, 12422 Chandler Blvd., North Hollywood 91607.