Pasadena Implements Comprehensive Fire Recovery Plan

At Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting, Pasadena officials discussed a multi-faceted approach to helping residents rebuild after the devastating Eaton fire that struck in January 2025. The Planning Department has assigned dedicated staff planners to each damaged property and created a team of “community connectors” to guide homeowners through the recovery process.

“I think the Department is spending a lot of time right now on the rebuild, on figuring out how we can assist our residents working through these processes. I think after going to Council on Monday night, we have a good idea now on how we can start to help them with the rebuild process, that we have some parameters set on what they can count on for their rebuild, and we know it’s going to be a process moving forward and we’re here to help as we can,” said Jennifer Paige, Director of Planning and Community Development.

The City has approved temporary orders that exceed state emergency provisions to offer greater flexibility for rebuilding. While state orders allow rebuilding up to 110% of what was lost with a 10% height increase, Pasadena’s approach adds further accommodations.

“What we added was you could move instead of being in the same footprint, that you could rebuild anywhere else on the lot as long as you met your setbacks, so that there’s a little bit more flexibility on where you would place the structure.” explained Paige. “And we allowed you to base it on gross floor area and not just lot coverage.”

The City Council also recommended that property owners of smaller homes should get a minimum of 150 square feet or 10 per cent additional space, whichever is larger. Paige noted, “for some of the smaller homes, if you had a thousand square foot home, 10% only a hundred square feet. So they thought someone should get at least 150 square feet, maybe a bedroom and a bathroom.”

City officials have reported that 185 structures were lost in the fire, including 117 single-family homes, 12 multifamily units in two buildings, three accessory dwelling units, five commercial structures, and 58 accessory structures.

The affected properties were concentrated in District 1 and District 4, with six homes lost in the NATHA neighborhood, 10 in Dundee Heights, and 17 in Victory Park, plus significant losses in Upper Hastings Ranch.

Each community connector is working directly with approximately 25-30 homeowners.

“We are connecting with them first by email, sending them written information so that they can refer back to it on phase one, phase two, debris removal,” explained Teresa Garcia, Senior Project Manager. “We called every one of them that we could reach if they had a phone number that was reachable… They have our direct numbers, so we’ll get calls throughout the day.”

The Planning Department is expediting building plan checks for fire victims and guaranteeing next-day building inspections, not only for fire victims but also “for any residential project that already had a permit issued.”

Staff are offering virtual consultations specifically because “many of the survivors are dislocated and they’re not living in Pasadena and they’re in different places,” Paige said.

The City has also asked to extend approval periods for entitlements and building permits for an additional year beyond what the code allows, recognizing “there’s going to be a regional impact on labor and materials and it’s going to affect project citywide.” Officials are exploring fee reductions for both temporary uses and building permits, which will be presented to Council soon.

Beyond residential properties, the city has received numerous requests from displaced schools, religious facilities, and childcare centers from Altadena seeking temporary locations in Pasadena. This has presented unexpected challenges, as Paige explained: “Part of the challenge with that has been on the zoning side, we’ve been able to accommodate it because of the emergency orders. But on the building and safety side and the fire safety requirements, those aren’t lessened.”

Commissioner Steven Olivas praised the City’s response.

Commissioner Michael Albrecht echoed the praise: “I just want to say thank you very much. I really appreciate it,” noting the extraordinary city response in helping displaced residents and schools return to some semblance of normalcy.

The City plans to continue providing updates to the Planning Commission as recovery efforts progress, with special attention to fees for temporary uses and building permits in the coming weeks.