City officials say long‑term recovery work is shifting back to departments; permits and debris removal remain priorities

An ad hoc recovery committee received a multi‑department update on long‑term recovery from the recent Palisades fires and storm impacts, hearing that the Emergency Management Department (EMD) plans to transfer primary recovery coordination back to line departments by Oct. 8 while keeping support available as needed.

EMD staff said the recovery operation established after the January event has matured enough to return day‑to‑day restoration and infrastructure roles to the departments that normally manage them. EMD manager Kerl Parks told the committee the city followed a national recovery framework (NDRF) and that “the recovery work is mature enough for departments to return to their regular duties” while EMD shifts to a supporting role. Staff said most Recovery Support Functions (RSFs) have met key objectives and that only limited coordination functions will remain under EMD after the handoff.

The committee heard that the city used private consultants during the surge phase and is seeking to keep technical capacity without a gap. EMD and other staff described Haggerty (consulting firm) as having provided data analytics, debris‑management expertise and communications support and said the city is pursuing competitively procured contracts to avoid an abrupt loss of that capacity. John Federsdale (EMD) said the city is pursuing a permanent recovery unit with roughly 11 positions to preserve institutional knowledge and enable a faster response to future disasters. He said the goal is to regularize one current interim position into an ongoing role.

City staff gave debris removal and recovery statistics: EMD said about 90 percent of debris cleanup work is complete, that only about 25 sites still have debris (EMD) and that more than 33,000 air purifiers were distributed to households. The city said 220 reconstruction projects have started and that certain schools and a shelter site are ready for residents and students to return.

Department of Building and Safety (DBS) staff provided permitting data tied to the recovery. DBS reported it has received 1,415 permit applications since the fires, has issued 524 permits and has 137 plans in an approved state awaiting permit pickup. DBS said 220 projects have begun construction, 19 sites are scheduled for public nuisance hearings related to debris or site conditions, and the department has launched an auto‑certification pathway for qualified architects; four architects were listed as approved in the program at the time of the briefing.

Committee members pressed staff on several implementation risks and operational lessons learned. Councilmember Rodríguez asked about protections ahead of the rainy season, citing concerns that contaminated soils and debris could wash into beaches and marine habitat; EMD staff said basin‑level tactical teams and interagency mitigation planning are active, that geotechnical partners are assessing slope stability, and that the city is coordinating with county public works on stormwater and debris basins. Councilmembers also raised housing‑related concerns: mobile home parks and displaced residents remain a priority, and the council office asked for more outreach to residents who changed mailing addresses so storm alerts reach them.

Committee members and staff discussed funding and FEMA reimbursements. The city’s finance briefing reported about $10 million remaining in the city’s emergency recovery account but said hundreds of millions in eligible costs have been submitted for FEMA review; staff cautioned that FEMA obligation and reimbursement can take months and that some grant and mitigation programs will not be awarded until 2026. The city described an inventory of roughly $241,000 submitted across multiple departments for immediate eligible debris work and said larger public‑works projects are under review with FEMA.

Several councilmembers urged the city to invest in permanent emergency management capacity rather than rely solely on outside consultants during recovery. Staff reiterated that competitive procurement and budget requests are being prepared so the city can retain needed capabilities without exceeding procurement rules or interrupting services.

Public comment at the start included a resident who lost her home and asked the city to waive building permit fees for rebuilds and to clarify responsibility for underground power‑line work; the committee did not act on the fee request during the hearing.

No new ordinances were introduced at the hearing. The committee voted to receive and file the recovery update as part of the meeting’s agenda.