Pacific Palisades, CA — A growing debate over California’s housing laws has reached the fire-scarred hillsides of the Pacific Palisades, as Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park is calling on Governor Gavin Newsom to halt the application of Senate Bill 9 (SB 9) in the community.
In a letter sent to Newsom this week, Park expressed concerns that SB 9—which allows homeowners to split single-family lots into two parcels and potentially build up to four housing units—poses a serious public safety risk in the aftermath of January’s devastating wildfires.
What Is SB 9?
Enacted in 2021, Senate Bill 9, also known as the California Housing Opportunity and More Efficiency (HOME) Act, was designed to address the state’s housing shortage. The law allows property owners to subdivide single-family lots and add additional housing units without going through the lengthy public hearing and environmental review processes typically required for new developments.
The intention was to encourage “infill housing”—more homes within existing neighborhoods—to ease California’s housing crisis. But critics argue that in certain areas, particularly those prone to natural disasters, the law may create unintended consequences.
Fire Zone Concerns
Park warned that developers are using emergency rebuilding orders—meant to speed up recovery after the fires—in tandem with SB 9 to convert former single-family lots into multi-unit developments without public input or environmental oversight.
“Opportunistic developers are now using emergency orders in conjunction with state density laws to exploit a devastating disaster for their economic advantage,” Park wrote in her letter.
The Pacific Palisades is classified as a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFSZ), where steep terrain, limited roadways, and dry brush already make fire evacuation difficult. Park and local residents fear that adding density without careful planning could further strain evacuation routes in the event of another wildfire.
Support From Local Leaders
The Pacific Palisades Community Council has backed Park’s call for a pause, and Mayor Karen Bass has also voiced concern.
“While SB 9 was passed to support the creation of more housing across California — something our state desperately needs — legislators in Sacramento could not have foreseen the bill’s impact on the Palisades community as it works to rebuild from one of the worst natural disasters in state history,” Bass said.
She warned that using SB 9 to add more units in the burn zone “could drastically further challenge ingress and egress… and fundamentally alter the safety of the area by straining local infrastructure.”
Pending Projects and Next Steps
According to the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety, seven properties in the Palisades currently have active SB 9 permit applications for duplex developments, including parcels on Hartzell Street, Galloway Street, and Amalfi Drive. None have been approved yet.
Meanwhile, another proposed bill, SB 549, which would create a “Resilient Rebuilding Authority” to help streamline fire recovery efforts, has been delayed until next year after pushback and misinformation about its intent.
For now, residents and city leaders are urging the state to pause SB 9’s use in wildfire zones until emergency evacuation capacity and infrastructure safety can be reassessed.