Neighborhood coalition urges Redmond to adopt R3‑27 wildfire home‑hardening code

Members of the Project Wildfire Neighborhood Coalition told Redmond City Council on Feb. 10 that adopting OregonResidential Specialty Code R3‑27 would improve the survivability of new homes in fire‑prone Central Oregon.

Jeffrey Ulm, who said he serves as the coalitionRedmond ambassador and chairs his neighborhood community wildfire protection committee, told council the code focuses on wildfire hazard mitigation for new residential construction and would "improve our survivability of future homes expected to be built in Redmond." He acknowledged the code does not retroactively change existing buildings but argued it sets consistent standards for future construction.

Lon Laniv, co‑chair of the Project Wildfire Neighborhood Coalition, said Deschutes County and the city of Sisters have adopted R3‑27 and urged Redmond to follow. "Each municipality within Deschutes County with a building department must individually adopt 3‑27 via local ordinance to make it mandatory," he said, noting regional coordination would help protect an estimated 60,000 homes forecast in the county over 20 years.

Robin Church, the coalitionsecretary, presented slides and a short video showing wildfire exposure and citing local evacuation experiences. The presentation asserted that home‑hardening measures can reduce ignition risk and that studies show building to wildfire‑resistant standards adds "less than 3% to construction costs." Church said adoption would also help insurance availability and reduce long‑term recovery costs.

Councilors asked about builder pushback and cost impacts for workforce housing; presenters responded that many builders already use some of the materials and estimated a 2–3% cost increase, often absorbed over a mortgage. Council members thanked the presenters and directed staff to review the model ordinance and return with recommendations for council consideration at a future date.

The coalition provided model construction code copies, sample ordinances adopted by Sisters and Deschutes County, and contact information for technical advisors as part of the meeting packet.