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Ojai commissioners review draft safety element; public pushes for evacuation planning and updated fire maps
Summary
Commissioners reviewed a second administrative draft of the General Plan safety element. Public commenters urged a clearer evacuation strategy, an explicit list of applicable state laws and updated fire-hazard maps; the commission recommended referral to the new Public Safety Commission for technical review before the element goes to council and CalFire review.
The Ojai Planning Commission on May 20 reviewed a second administrative draft of the city's General Plan safety element and heard multiple public comments urging stronger evacuation planning, incorporation of up-to-date fire-hazard maps, and additional technical review.
Community Development Director Lucas Cybert and consultant Ron Whitmore (Remy and Associates) summarized the multi-year focused general plan update. The safety element draft organizes goals, policies and actions around community preparedness, hazard mitigation, seismic hazards, flooding and dam failure, wildfire, hazardous materials, heat and drought. Consultants said recent state statutes and improved data motivated many of the proposed revisions and that CalFire and Ventura County would be asked to review the draft as the city prepares a public draft and environmental review.
Public commenters raised specific technical and procedural concerns. Dennis Coburn expressed alarm about evacuation capacity and highway gridlock during a major wildfire, saying the draft's wording left an impression of ad hoc response: "At the stage we're at, we're basically guaranteeing chaos," he said. Randy Kagan and Larry Steiningold urged that the newly formed Public Safety Commission review sections on evacuation, circulation and fire hazards prior to council consideration. Resident Renee Roth flagged that the draft relied on an older fire-hazard map and asked for clear, scenario-based evacuation analysis and an explicit list of state laws the city must follow.
Consultants and staff responded that Ventura County has reviewed the draft and that CalFire will perform a formal checklist review before the element proceeds to the State Board of Forestry review process; they said the city will prepare an implementation strategy, an EIR and that the Safety Element's actions are intended to guide follow-up studies and code updates rather than immediately change budgets. Staff agreed to capture public comments and to include a list of applicable state laws and updated fire-hazard maps in subsequent drafts; commissioners asked that the draft be reviewed by the Public Safety Commission before forwarding to council.
Why it matters: California now requires specific safety-element content and CalFire review in many cases; for Ojai, the safety element determines policy on wildfire adaptation, evacuation, infrastructure and emergency coordination in a valley with constrained ingress and egress. Public requests for clearer evacuation analysis, up-to-date maps and a public-facing summary reflect community concern that strategic, practical evacuation steps be communicated and implemented.
Next steps: Staff will incorporate commission and public comments, forward the safety element to city council study session and submit the draft to CalFire and Ventura County for formal review; the public draft and an EIR will follow. Commissioners and members of the public also recommended that staff provide a concise "bottom line up front" public summary and refer key sections to the Public Safety Commission for technical review before council adoption.
