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Council introduces ordinance adopting state fire-hazard severity map for Roseville (first reading)
Summary
City staff presented the state Fire Marshal's fire hazard severity zone map and the council voted to introduce for first reading an ordinance designating moderate and high fire hazard severity zones within Roseville as required by state law.
The Roseville City Council on May 21 introduced for first reading an ordinance to adopt moderate and high fire hazard severity zones for areas inside the city, following required mapping produced by the California State Fire Marshal.
Fire Chief Ryan Harrigan told the council the state fire marshal used a model centered on probability of an area burning and expected fire behavior under extreme conditions to classify lands, and that the local map must be adopted by ordinance within 120 days of receipt. “This agenda item is to introduce for first reading an ordinance to designate moderate, high, and very high fire severity zones within the city of Roseville as as required by the California government code,” Harrigan said on the record.
Chief Harrigan said the bulk of the city is classified as “not designated” for fire hazard; the city contains 4,765 acres designated moderate and 44 acres designated high hazard, with no very high-hazard acres. He said moderate zones do not carry additional regulatory requirements beyond the designation, while properties in high hazard zones are subject to wildland-urban interface building-code provisions and require natural hazard disclosure on property transfers. Harrigan and Division Chief and Fire Marshal Mike Bridal answered council questions about the model, which emphasizes ember cast and wind, and explained that hazard maps evaluate long-term hazard (30–50 years) and do not automatically reflect locally implemented mitigations.
Jennifer Chapman, a member of the public with experience in wildfire issues, urged clearer public-facing materials and consistent color usage on the published maps. Councilmember Helgesheld asked whether the city may submit mitigations or supporting information when returning the ordinance to the state; staff said the state requests only the adopted ordinance and map file.
Councilmember Helgesheld moved and Councilmember Acucci seconded introduction of the ordinance for first reading. A roll-call vote recorded all five members — Vice Mayor Karen Albert, Councilmembers Helgesheld, Mandanza, Acucci and Mayor Bernasconi — voting yes. Staff will submit the adopted ordinance and map to the state fire marshal by the July deadline if adoption proceeds after the second reading.
