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Roseville council gives first reading to ordinance adopting state fire-hazard severity maps
Summary
City council held a first reading and unanimous vote to adopt state-designated fire hazard severity zones for Roseville and will transmit the ordinance to the State Fire Marshal by the statutory deadline; staff and a public commenter urged clearer public outreach on maps and website display.
The Roseville City Council introduced for first reading an ordinance to adopt the State Fire Marshal’s moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity maps for the city and voted unanimously to move the ordinance forward.
The ordinance formally designates areas within Roseville as moderate and high fire hazard severity zones under California Government Code §51178 and the state model used by the State Fire Marshal. City Fire Chief Ryan Harrigan and Division Chief and Fire Marshal Mike Bradley told the council the designations are based on statewide criteria that emphasize ember spread and expected fire behavior under extreme conditions.
Harrigan said the maps are a hazard assessment, not a short‑term risk calculation, and listed common local mitigations — underground electric utilities, the city water supply, annual weed abatement and building/fire department measures — that reduce risk even in designated hazard areas.
The presentation noted Roseville’s totals: 4,765 acres classified as moderate, 44 acres as high and no “very high” acres; converted to parcels the map shows 7,283 parcels in moderate zones and 100 parcels in high zones. Harrigan told the council that moderate zones carry no additional regulatory requirements beyond adoption, but properties in high hazard zones are subject to state Wildland‑Urban Interface building standards (California Building Code Chapter 7A) and to natural‑hazard disclosures in real estate transactions.
In public comment, Jennifer Chapman — who has tracked fire planning locally for years — urged improved public education and clearer online presentation of the maps. “The colors are different. It’s confusing,” she said, adding that many residents will view the documents on phones and that the city should ensure legends and maps match across formats.
Councilors asked staff about the assumptions behind the model, including wind and ember cast; Bradley said wind, low relative humidity and high temperatures are primary inputs. Council members also asked whether the city may add explanatory mitigation detail when submitting the ordinance; staff said the State Fire Marshal’s submittal requirement is a copy of the adopted ordinance and map only. Councilors pressed staff to continue public outreach to explain how mitigation lowers risk even where the hazard designation exists.
The council carried the motion to introduce the ordinance on a 5‑0 roll call. The ordinance will be sent to the State Fire Marshal by the July 10 deadline required in state law.
The ordinance affects permitting and disclosure for parcels in high zones and starts the local process required by state law; it does not itself impose new retrofit requirements beyond applicable state building code provisions for parcels classified by the state as high hazard.
