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Friday, Mar 29, 2024

L.A. Proposal Could Reduce Fires

There’s an old saying: bad things come in threes. Right now, the city of Los Angeles is far past that. A struggling economy and record unemployment, a pandemic, civil unrest, earthquakes, heat waves…the list goes on. Admittedly, the city has made it through these challenges before, and I believe it will again. One of L.A.’s and particularly the San Fernando Valley’s better qualities is the ability to come up with innovative solutions that set a precedent for the rest of the county and for the next generation. However, there is one recurring issue that the city has not fully addressed, even as it grows in scope and frequency: wildfires. Each year, communities experience the destruction of hundreds of thousands of acres – taking with them homes, businesses, and lives. In an era where political posturing has resulted in the withholding of federal aid, and multiple ongoing crises have slowed down the delivery of state assistance, cities need to start looking into preventative measures themselves. Fire season is a threat to both rural and urban communities: think of the Woolsey Fire in 2018, which burned 96,949 acres, destroyed 1,643 structures, and prompted the evacuation of more than 295,000 residents. And the recent Lake Fire, which has taken over 20,000 acres and forced the evacuation of over 100 homes amidst a pandemic. As cities across the state prepare to intensify their efforts to halt the spread of COVID-19, they should also look for solutions like the “Building a Safer Los Angeles” ordinance, to lessen the effects of another severe fire season. After the 1933 Long Beach earthquake, the city received the Field Act mandating better building standards. After the 1994 Northridge quake, those standards expanded to freeway bridges. Why not apply the same logic here, and pass this ordinance to stop the spread of these fires and minimize damage to property and life? Construction materials play a critical role in a fire’s speed and spread. Obviously, wood burns, but there are a variety of noncombustible materials that should be taken into consideration for new construction, especially as communities continue to urbanize and population density increases. Critics argue against durability because it increases the cost of construction, but these upfront costs pay for themselves once you factor in the residential displacement, fire damage, building loss, business interruption, and burden on firefighters and community water reserves caused every time a cheaper-built structure goes up in smoke. A 2017 study from the National Institute of Building Science quantifying the benefits of enhancing resilience in building design revealed that for every dollar spent on more robust construction measures, the savings is $4 in potential losses due to fire in the wildland-urban interface. Building with resilient, noncombustible materials is a preventative measure rather than a reactionary one, and frankly it seems common sense given that development is inching toward more and more wildfire-prone areas. “Building a Safer Los Angeles” is a policy that can help protect communities and residents, and does not require additional taxpayer funding. The ordinance, which recently passed unanimously in the Planning and Land Use Management Committee, expands the existing Fire District 1 to elsewhere in the city. It requires certain mid-rise and mixed-use multifamily residential developments (4-7 story buildings, not single- or two-family homes) to be built from materials that decrease the chance of fire ignition and spread, such as concrete and fire-treated lumber. Our city is facing enough crises as is. We have a chance to make a difference for the next fire season, and we should take it. Now is the time for the Los Angeles City Council to take action and pass this ordinance to increase safety for our communities moving forward.

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