With the recent fires starting to get under the control, the most immediate concern following is the rebuilding of the damaged areas. Fortunately, the bulk of the damage was localized to two areas with a lot of brush rather than just suburban zones. Obviously though, the damage was quite extensive with all the buildings decimated. With that many people have been displaced and even if the fires ended right this second, it would take a good period to clear the rubble and deal with the aftermath. Governor Newsom has signed something to allow for a quick rebuilding but it doesn’t exactly feel right.
Part of the order for the rebuilding is making it easier to clear permits. While this sounds nice on paper, it is concerning just how this will end up being implemented. I know the Pacific Palisades have been around for a while and might have been considered an upper middle class and above, affluent area. But one has to think that this fire may cause the city to re-think how it’s going to re-build. To be fair, this event was more of a freak disaster. On the other hand, with the way the area has all that brush, one would consider that perhaps this situation provides a chance to re-assess how things are developed the next time with fire safety and probably earthquake prevention in mind.
Also, will those areas affected just replicate what exist? Some homes might be really outdated and possibly their codes weren’t up to standard. So I can’t for all practical purposes see a 1:1 replica of what had been built.
In a way, I do hope that this allows to pave the way for a better structure. Like will these areas have better public transportation? I doubt I’d move to these spots if I could afford them after they finished but in a theoretical scenario where I did and was forced to travel to spots like Downtown LA, Santa Monica or Torrance even, I’d like to have that ability given just how far these areas are.
I guess what I’m trying to say is why just keep things status quo? I’ve seen similar criticisms and reactions on forums. Usually, after a major catastrophe, places come out for the better. It’s one thing for me to sit and complain about Del Amo Mall changing over the years because of how I miss the 80s vibe. But the mall itself wasn’t destroyed to the ground. Here, there’s a clear shot to improve those parts of LA (not even really LA if you think about it)
Then there’s the actual LA part that won’t get updated because it wasn’t affected as badly (outside of smoke) That’s the part that really probably needs a major overhaul down the line. What happens when some of those buildings get caught by a bad disaster? A lot of spots just aren’t well maintained or they’re simply very old.
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