Low-income housing groups sue to allow rezone of Palisades, Altadena fire areas

Low-income housing advocates are preparing to challenge Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' suspension of a state law in the Palisades and Eaton Fire areas that was intended to spur new home construction, but with smaller and more densely constructed units instead of the single-family houses that were burned in January.

Homeowners in the burned areas opposed the law when the Legislature passed it, saying it stripped them of their property rights by rezoning single family neighborhoods to allow apartment buildings.

YIMBY Law's executive director, Sonja Trauss, argues that Newsom overstepped his authority last week when he issued an executive order suspending Senate Bill 9, which allowed division of the parcels.

"In a state of emergency, our understanding is that the governor would be allowed to suspend laws that interfere with disaster mitigation and recovery. They would have to somehow say SB 9 is interfering with disaster mitigation and recovery," Trauss said. "Rebuilding is recovery," she continued. "Allowing more people to do more with their land is facilitating recovery."

Attorney Alexander Robertson IV said his clients in the Pacific Palisades were concerned about having their property rights taken away.

"They want to be able to build pre-fire buildings and improvements. Having gone through an unspeakable tragedy, having property rights stripped away is an insult to injury," he said in a phone interview Tuesday. "The lack of the city's emergency preparedness is not a legitimate basis to strip away private property rights," Robertson continued. "The city should do a better job on emergency evacuations rather than rewrite zoning laws."

Robertson & Associates LLP; Foley Bezek Behle & Curtis LLP and Gandhi Law Group allege that a "zombie" fire ignited the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7.

Newsom and Bass issued a pair of executive orders suspending SB 9 on July 30. Newsom's order covers the Palisades and Eaton Fire areas in Los Angeles County. Bass' order covers just the Palisades Fire area.

Bass acknowledged that SB 9 was designed to spur the construction of more housing and went on to say that legislators did not foresee its impact on the Palisades community as it tries to rebuild after the Jan. 7 wildfire.

"The ability for developers to use SB 9 to change recently destroyed single-family home lots into multiple residences could drastically further challenge ingress and egress in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone following the worst fire disaster the city has ever faced. It could fundamentally alter the safety of the area by straining local infrastructure," Bass said in a statement.

Both executive orders are illegal according to the state and local codes under which they were promulgated, according to Patterson & O'Neill's managing partner, Ryan J. Patterson.

YIMBY Law and Patterson & O'Neill said they have successfully overturned numerous housing permit denials on behalf of property developers seeking to build affordable housing in Los Angeles. They believe they have a clear case against the executive orders.

"The laws do give additional powers in the event of emergency. Government Code Section 8558b says if strict compliance were to hinder an emergency, but SB 9 in no way hinders the mitigation of an emergency," Patterson said.

Los Angeles City Code Section 8.29 essentially empowers the mayor to issue orders protecting life and property, which Bass' order does not, he noted.

"There is nothing linking additional density to added fire danger," Patterson said. "If the city doesn't have enough egress points, requiring housing that is less fire safe does not improve safety. New housing must meet higher fire standards."

The question of a lawsuit is moot for the executive director of the Coalition for Economic Survival.

"Our position is, SB 9 should never have been passed because it doesn't guarantee affordable housing. We think SB 9 is a developer tool to push out existing tenants and gentrify neighborhoods," Larry Gross said.

"As far as the Palisades goes, our position is, when rebuilding, there should be a requirement to build affordable housing. That's how we ensure we don't have segregated communities," Gross continued.