Focus
Los Angeles Mayor Bass launches EO10 to fast-track commercial rebuilding in Pacific Palisades after wildfire
The Argonaut – October 30
In an effort to spur prompt rehabilitation of Pacific Palisades' commercial sector post-fire, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has enacted Emergency Executive Order 10 (EO10), a decree set to accelerate the authorization process for businesses within the community. Key elements of EO10 highlighted by the Mayor's office include offering a brisk administrative review for commercial projects that align with the Specific Plan, extending land use entitlements for five years, and establishing programs like Tenant Improvement Self-Certification to expedite the commercial enhancements. In conjunction, the order outlines a waiver for grading bonds on permissible minor reconstructions outside geohazard zones, slashing expenses for proprietors in geologically stable patches.
News
Malibu City Council designates entire city as very high fire hazard severity zone
Santa Monica Daily Press – November 1
The Malibu City Council unanimously adopted an ordinance Monday night officially designating the entire city as a very high fire hazard severity zone, making it one of only a handful of California municipalities where every square inch carries the state's highest fire risk classification. The council approved Ordinance No. 527, which updates the city's fire hazard designations based on the State Fire Marshal's 2025 Local Responsibility Area Fire Hazard Severity Zone Map released in March.
Please note that multiple recent state housing laws, including AB 130, AB 2011, and SB 9, cross-reference the siting criteria under SB 35 (Gov. Code § 65913.4(a)(6)), which prohibits housing development projects on sites within a designated very high fire hazard severity zone unless specified fire hazard mitigation measures have been adopted. Similarly, the Starter Home Revitalization Act (SB 684 and SB 1123) prohibits otherwise qualifying housing projects and subdivisions in high or very high fire hazard severity zones. Unlike SB 35, however, this prohibition does not include an exception for sites with adopted mitigation measures. Please see our prior legal alert for more information about the Starter Home Revitalization Act.
Major California ‘land-back’ deal with tribe preserves swath of southern Sierra
San Francisco Chronicle – October 29
The Tule River Indian Tribe, whose ancestors have lived amid the rivers and woodlands of the southern Sierra Nevada for thousands of years, are reclaiming 17,000 acres of their historical lands. The acquisition, announced by California Gov. Gavin Newsom last Wednesday, comes after the nonprofit Conservation Fund purchased two cattle ranches in rural Tulare County and, with funding from the state, helped transfer the properties to the tribe. A growing number of “land back” deals have been orchestrated in California in recent years as greater light has been cast on the displacement of Native Americans from their ancestral lands.
New report says S.F. Family Zoning Plan will fall short of state housing mandates
The San Francisco Standard – October 29
The controversial plan to upzone wide swaths of San Francisco is projected to produce only half the amount of new housing in twice the time required by state authorities, according to a new analysis from the city’s chief economist. In the most optimistic scenario projected by the controller’s office, the proposed rezoning could create about 14,600 new units over the next 20 years — a fraction of the benchmark set by the state.
The Planning Department previously estimated that rezoning would allow for the creation of up to 64,000 homes. California’s Department of Housing and Community Development conducted a preliminary review of the Family Zoning Plan last month and found that it meets state requirements, partly based on the Planning Department’s projections.
The Planning Department published information about how the Family Zoning Plan will comply with SB 79. Please see our SB 79 legal alert for more information about that recently approved state housing law.
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