Council introduces ordinance to adopt updated CAL FIRE fire‑hazard severity map; staff, fire chief outline implications

San Dimas council on May 27 introduced an ordinance to adopt the updated Local Responsibility Area (LRA) Fire Hazard Severity Zone map prepared by the state fire marshal, a change staff said is required by state law and intended to guide building standards and emergency planning.

The presentation noted CAL FIRE's March 24 release of new maps using updated modeling, fire history, ember travel and local fire weather. Assistant Fire Chief Steve Cabrera explained that once adopted, the map informs building and fire‑code requirements (e.g., Chapter 7A and Chapter 49 of the fire code), ensures real‑estate disclosures for properties within higher‑severity zones, and guides defensible‑space enforcement for new developments.

Staff emphasized that the adoption of the LRA map does not automatically determine insurance rates — insurers use proprietary underwriting models — but that properties placed into higher severity categories may require additional building or defensible‑space measures. Cabrera also noted that zone definitions (moderate, high, very high) will be used to direct 2026 defensible‑space inspections and that local implementation details (including how Zone 0 evolves) remain subject to county and board decisions.

Councilmembers introduced Ordinance 13‑25, waived further reading and voted 5–0 to introduce the ordinance; staff and the assistant fire chief said they would continue outreach and return with implementation details as required by the statute.