Residents of Rambla Pacifico, Las Flores Mesa, Pena Road, and La Costa neighborhoods speak out
In Malibu, when they are rebuilding a home or business after a disaster, victims need to assess and address their parcel’s unique land characteristics, such as landslides and slope concerns, applicable technical guidelines, and building code compliance standards as conditions precedent to obtaining the necessary permits needed to break ground and begin rebuilding. The city offers community meetings tailored for each neighborhood that was damaged in the recent fires to address each area’s ecology, geography, waste disposal attributes and other unique considerations.
On April 1, residents in Rambla Pacifico, Las Flores Canyon/Mesa, Pena Road, and La Costa areas convened at City Hall to discuss applicable processes for their rebuilding projects. First, city staff and Lt. Col. Nate Weander of the Army Corps of Engineers updated the progress of debris removal, noting that teams are clearing properties as soon as possible at a rate of 40 parcels a day and teams have cleared more than 260 tons of concrete and other debris. Weander noted the Corps’ efforts currently are focusing on La Costa Beach, and he hopes to have that part of the effort completed by the end of the month. The Corps’ goal is to clear all coastal properties by June 1.
Weander also noted that before clearing a lot they must assess whether any chimneys are in peril of falling and injuring debris removal workers and whether any asbestos remains. “Homeowners will be informed three days before they go to clear debris from a parcel and the Corps will invite homeowners to meet at their homesite on the morning scheduled for debris removal and together, the Corps professionals and a homeowner can conduct a 360-degree assessment of the property,” Weander said. Addressing parcels on slopes that are hard for debris removal teams to access, he stated, “Our contractor uses a computer program integrating artificial intelligence to try and find the best way to remove debris on hard-to-access properties — in some areas in the valley where the Eaton Fire occurred when there are terribly steep homes we have people that are rappelling-certified go down there and remove some of the debris by hand.”
Weander stated that owners will be notified approximately three days before a debris removal team starts clearing land and owners are welcome to participate in the Corps’ 360-degree assessment on the day of debris removal. “This is your land,” he told attendees. “You get a vote — so if you originally opted for your foundation to be removed but decide before we arrive, you’ve talked to your builder and you decided that you now don’t want the foundation removed, we can amend the work order to reflect that. However, if you originally opted for the foundation to not be removed and you want to change that, we have to go back and amend the work order, which can take a while.”
Officials discussed the city’s streamlining protocols, which provide for multi-parcel geotechnical and topographic surveys that could save those who are rebuilding both time and expense. City staff noted that landslide study reports will be madeavailable to design-build professionals and homeowners to facilitate expeditious rebuilding. The city and its consultants discussed the existing landslide inventory map. Officials noted that if a parcel’s conditions mandate that it is unwise or untenable to build a like-for-like replacement home within the footprint of a destroyed structure, the city will afford the latitude needed to substantially relocate existing homes elsewhere on a property if that can be done safely.
“These neighborhoods discussed today are lucky in that there are less hoops to jump through compared to other neighborhoods that are rebuilding,” said Tyler Eaton, principal planner for the city.
That said, those who are rebuilding must adhere with keystone principles applicable to all the post-fire rebuilds, staff noted. California and Los Angeles County building codes must be strictly complied with and there is no latitude for city officials to waive their requirements. “Like for like” replacement structures qualify for permit streamlining as long as they have the same number of bedrooms, plumbing fixtures, and plumbing fixture units.
Finally, rebuilds on landslides must conform to LA County Building Code Section 110.2.3.6, which the Malibu City Council has adopted, mandates that rebuilding applicants must demonstrate that replacement structures shall not exceed the area, number of stories, water load affecting the parcel or number of fixtures and bedrooms of the destroyed structure and they must demonstrate that the replacement structure and/or the associated private sewage disposal system and replacement landscaping will not result in a greater amount of groundwater infiltration than occurred before a structure was destroyed. That provision also set forth requirements for soils engineering and geological reports and that the applicant must release the county of any liability relating to the property.
The La Costa Overlay District
Presenting city staff and city-contracted professionals addressed the La Costa Overlay District, addressed in Malibu Municipal Code Section 17.42.020(B). That district encompasses both parcels on the coast and on the land side of Pacific Coast Highway. They talked about geology topics, including the circumstances necessary for one to utilize limited reports versus comprehensive reports when complying with requirements to address parcels’ characteristics, the latter report type being much more expensive and time-intensive to produce.
Two factors apply in determining if a person rebuilding can provide a limited report. It depends on the scope and location of a rebuild and on whether re-use of the existing foundation is feasible and permitted. Slope setbacks are governed by the California Building Code Section 1808. Issues relating to slope setbacks and the effect of those requirements on whether homeowners could keep their foundations engendered a lot of attendee conversation. As fire victims have noted in all of the community meetings, if one must remove all or some of a foundation, it takes a lot of extra time and funding.
“La Costa has design standards and guidelines with special protocols concerning height standards,” Eaton noted. “There is a mechanism to move your home away from the original footprint for safety. A person’s house can be rebuilt exactly how it was or people can choose to design it to be more in line with the overlay district and, if so, any extra 10% of square footage must comply with the overlay district. ”
As with all things rebuilding, staff noted that appointments can be made at the City Rebuild Center so as to provide every applicant with a full understanding of the protocols applying to their individual rebuild.
Geotechnical hazard areas
Malibu is beset with many historically active, dormant, and ancient landslides as well as earthquake-induced landslide-susceptible areas. Those who are rebuilding must familiarize themselves with the Malibu Coast Fault Zone and debris flow hazard areas. Showcasing a dormant/ancient landslides inventory map, the expert team focused on historically active landslides that are located at Las Flores Mesa-Eagle Pass, Rambla Pacifico on the west flank of Las Flores Canyon whichcame to the state of stability in 2000, and Calle del Barco in the La Costa neighborhood.
They also discussed a United States Geological Service map depicting debris-flow susceptible areas, noting that MMC section 110.2.3.6 sets forth part of the California Landslide Area Building Code. Those identified landslide hazards will play a role in the siting for structure rebuilds. Technical consultants helping victims to rebuild need to take those provisions into account when generating their reports and must recount what the hazards are if one rebuilds in areas, staff, and its consultants emphasized.
“If a person’s property was already cleared via a fault investigation on his property or an adjacent property, the data set forth in the report clearing the property can be used by a consultant to generate a report,” said Lauren Doyel, a geotechnical engineer hired by the city. “Submittal packages must set forth the floor plans of the destroyed home and an owner’s onsite wastewater treatment systems inspection report which denotes a site plan showing all components of the OWTS, including tanks, connection lines, and dispersal field or pits.”
Reports must display all structures and take setbacks into account, and when necessary, retaining walls must be replaced, moved, expanded, or installed to protect structures and parcels, she added.
For fire victims with Pena Canyon and Las Tunas Beach bluff setbacks that apply to building new foundations, Eaton noted that, as with all things involved in the rebuilding efforts, the applicable assessment is project-specific with regard totopological characteristics.
Therefore, the best tact for homeowners to take is to schedule a meeting with staff and consultants at the rebuild center. He also said a policy document is forthcoming, which will address whether basements are allowed as long as they are within the 10% exceeding the original footprint. He noted that the Malibu City Code does not count basements up to 1,000 square feet and the council may address that.