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Agoura Hills staff present state‑mandated evacuation analysis; Planning Commission opens public hearing
Summary
City staff presented an evacuation‑route analysis required by AB 747 and AB 1409 and opened a public hearing on a general plan amendment to adopt the study into the safety element; staff and state reviewers said the analysis does not change land use or authorize physical roadway changes.
Community Development Director Robbie Nesovic told the Agoura Hills Planning Commission on April 16 that staff prepared an evacuation analysis required by state law and recommended adopting it by reference into the city’s safety element.
The presentation, delivered as the commission opened a public hearing, said the analysis assesses the capacity, safety and viability of existing evacuation routes under multiple emergency scenarios. Nesovic emphasized that the project ‘‘does not approve any physical development or permanent roadway modifications, does not approve any action which would reduce roadway capacity, and does not affect land use, zoning, or housing in any form.’’
Why it matters: The state’s AB 747 and AB 1409 require cities to identify evacuation routes, evaluate their capacity, and designate evacuation locations under a range of disaster scenarios. Agoura Hills staff said the analysis will inform future planning and emergency coordination rather than compel land‑use changes.
Staff described the city’s role in an evacuation as supportive: law enforcement and fire agencies and the incident commander have authority to order and manage evacuations, with the city’s emergency operations center coordinating resources and public communications. The presentation named the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and the Los Angeles County Fire Department as agencies with authority to order evacuations.
Staff recounted the project’s review history: a draft went to the Land Use and Economic Development Subcommittee on March 27, 2025, and an earlier Planning Commission meeting on May 1, 2025 prompted additional analysis including a wildfire scenario with schools in session and refined vehicle‑type assumptions for Old Agoura. Kimley‑Horn, the city’s traffic consultant, performed the additional modeling.
Robbie Nesovic said the city circulated the revised analysis to state and regional agencies and worked directly with Cal Fire. Staff reported that Cal Fire and the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Resource Protection Subcommittee reviewed the material and, following a March 10, 2026 meeting, issued a formal letter recommending no changes and stating that the city’s safety element and evacuation analysis meet statutory requirements.
Kimley‑Horn traffic engineer Matt Stewart described the technical approach, saying the team used guidance from the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and that the 2020 evacuation plan routes were the analysis baseline. Stewart identified U.S. 101 as the ‘‘ultimate evacuation gateway’’ and said the study modeled four scenarios: two all‑at‑once nighttime wildfires (northeast and south), a nighttime phased evacuation, and a daytime evacuation with schools in session to test weekday capacity.
Public concerns that appeared in prior comment were addressed in staff remarks. Nesovic warned of ‘‘misinformation’’ about the project’s effects and reiterated that the analysis does not change the city’s adopted evacuation plan, does not authorize lane closures, and does not alter zoning or permit housing development.
Next steps: The commission opened the public hearing and heard the staff presentation; the staff report attached the BOF/Cal Fire letter and staff said it would present a recommendation and receive public testimony as part of the hearing process. No final Planning Commission decision on the amendment is recorded in the presented transcript excerpt.
