Mudslide Destroys Homes in Pacific Palisades, Roads Blocked County to Conduct After-Action Review of January Wildfires
The review will examine interagency cooperation, emergency notifications, evacuation procedures, and post-fire recovery efforts
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved a motion to commission an independent after-action report on the response and recovery efforts following the January 2025 wildfires, officials said Tuesday.
Supervisors Lindsey P. Horvath and Kathryn Barger introduced the measure, which directs the county to contract with an external expert to assess emergency management practices, multi-agency
“The hillside didn’t get steeper magically,” Onderdonk told NBC4. “The rock type didn’t change, but if you add a whole lot of extra water, what you do is you destabilize that hillside.”
The Instagram post by @Citizen stated that some residents have been unable to leave their homes due to the debris blocking roadways. One neighbor reportedly contacted the city for information on clearing the area but was told officials are uncertain how to proceed due to the risk of further collapses.
NBC4 reported that the owner of the destroyed Castellammare Drive home was not injured, as he was living at another Pacific Palisades property. He initially felt relief that the house had survived the fire, only for it to later collapse due to shifting ground.
NBC4 reported that Los Angeles’ Bureau of Engineering has not yet determined the cause of the landslide. However, Nate Onderdonk, a professor of Earth Sciences at California State University Long Beach, told NBC4 that excess water—potentially from recent storms or a water main break linked to firefighting efforts—may have played a role in the collapse.
coordination, and public communication during and after the fires. The review will focus on the Eaton and Palisades Fires, which caused widespread destruction.
“All communities impacted by this year’s wildfires have important questions that deserve to be answered,” Horvath said in a statement. “We must understand all that occurred and refine our emergency management practices to keep one another safe.”
Barger emphasized the importance of learning from past disasters to improve future responses. “Disaster readiness is rooted in learning from past emergencies and acting on those lessons,” she said. “By evaluating our past actions and strengthening coordination, we can ensure a more effective response when disasters strike.”
The review will examine interagency cooperation, emergency notifications, evacuation procedures, and post-fire recovery efforts, including disaster recovery centers, debris removal, and assistance for displaced individuals. It will also assess communication strategies between first responders, law enforcement, and municipal agencies.
Additionally, the report will evaluate the role of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health in wildfire response and the coordination of personal protective equipment distribution. Recommendations for improvements to evacuation shelters and donation management systems will also be included.
The county’s report will be conducted alongside two after-action reviews led by the state. Governor Gavin Newsom’s office is overseeing a review focused on preparedness and emergency response
efforts by state and local agencies in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Another broader assessment, led by the California Office of Emergency Services, will evaluate the long-term response and recovery process.
The Board of Supervisors has also called for an evaluation of pre-deployment strategies during extreme weather events, the adequacy of firefighting resources, and the impact of brush clearance policies on wildfire prevention.
Commissioner Lara Presses State Farm to Justify Rate Hikes and Halt Policy Cancellations
In response to the ongoing insurance crisis and mounting financial instability in the wake of recent wildfires, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has conditionally approved State Farm’s request for an emergency interim rate increase. The approval is contingent on the company justifying its request with financial data in a public hearing set for April 8, 2025.
Commissioner Lara is also urging State Farm to halt policy non-renewals and secure a $500 million capital infusion from its parent company to bolster its financial health. He presented this proposal in a recent meeting with State Farm representatives, the California Department of Insurance, and the designated intervenor in the case. The transcript from that meeting was made public this week.
For months, the Department of Insurance engaged in discussions with State Farm and the intervenor to reach a resolution on the company’s rate increase request. However, negotiations stalled when State Farm claimed its financial position had further deteriorated, prompting the company to directly petition Commissioner Lara for an emergency rate hike.
At a February 26, 2025, meeting in Oakland, State Farm representatives assured Lara that they could cover claims from the devastating Southern California wildfires but warned that the disaster had worsened their overall financial condition.
Given State Farm’s status as California’s largest home insurer, Lara has pressed the company for a clear strategy to stabilize its financial standing while continuing to serve more than 1 million homeowners in the state.
Commissioner Lara stated the importance of balancing consumer protection with market stability in his response:
“The role of Insurance Commissioner involves balancing a stable and sustainable insurance market that serves consumers with effective oversight. To ensure longterm choices for Californians, I had to make an unprecedented decision in the
short term.
“State Farm claims it is committed to its California customers and aims to restore financial stability. I expect both State Farm and its parent company to meet their responsibilities and not shift the burden entirely onto their customers. The facts will be revealed in an open, transparent hearing.
“Currently, too many Californians live in fear of having their insurance policies non-renewed. This anxiety perpetuates misinformation and discourages consumers from accessing their entitled benefits. This situation is unacceptable. I will remain vigilant in ensuring that State Farm processes claims fairly, fully, and promptly, and stands by its California customers.
“To resolve this matter, I am ordering State Farm to respond to questions in an official hearing, promoting transparency and a path forward. It is evident that other California insurers are unable to absorb State Farm’s existing customers, which poses a significant risk of these customers ending up on the FAIR Plan—a scenario we all wish to avoid as my Sustainable Insurance Strategy is implemented.
“We will finally get to the bottom of State Farm’s financial condition. I am confident that my approach will provide Californians with greater choices in a competitive and stable insurance market—exactly what they deserve.”
Pending the outcome of the April 8 hearing, State Farm’s proposed rate hikes are as follows:
• Non-Tenant Homeowners: 21.8%
• Tenant (Renters): 15%
• Tenant (Condominium Unitowners): 15%
• Rental Dwelling: 38%
Despite having received multiple rate increases in recent years, State Farm has ceased issuing new policies in California and non-renewed thousands of existing policies, raising concerns about its financial situation. The upcoming hearing is particularly important, as rate hearings under Proposition 103 are rare. State Farm was also the subject of the last such hearing in 2015.
The outcome of the hearing will determine whether the requested rate hikes are justified or if further regulatory actions are necessary to stabilize the insurance market while protecting California homeowners.
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Mayor Bass’ Text Messages Deleted Amid Pacific Palisades Fire Response
Public Records Requests Reveal That Mayor Bass’ Phone Auto-Deletes Messages
On January 7, as powerful winds and dry conditions fueled a destructive fire in Pacific Palisades, Mayor Bass was more than 7,000 miles away on an official diplomatic trip to Africa. As the fire spread, destroying homes and forcing evacuations, Bass quickly returned to Los Angeles, spending nearly 24 hours in transit.
While her office insists that she was in constant communication with city officials during that period, there is no way to verify the content of those communications. A city attorney has confirmed that Bass’ phone is set to automatically delete text messages after 30 days.
Spectrum News’ Kate Cagle said, in an Instagram post, “Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass says she is trying to recover her text messages from January regarding the Palisades Fire after her phone automatically deleted them after thirty days” Under California law, any written communication relating to government business is considered a public record. The Los Angeles Times and other news organizations filed public records requests in early January, seeking text messages related to Bass’ fire response and travel arrangements.
However, on March 7, nearly two months later, Bass’ office responded
that it had “no responsive records.”
When pressed further, City Attorney David Michaelson clarified that Bass’ phone settings do not retain messages beyond 30 days and that there is no legal requirement for city officials to preserve text messages.
Legal analysts and transparency advocates argue that such a policy contradicts Los Angeles’ own document retention rules, which require most government records to be kept for at least two years.
“There is no way for the press and public to hold government fully accountable without access to all the information,” said David Loy of the First Amendment Coalition. “The ability to review records is fundamental to trust in public officials.”
Further complicating the issue is the question of whether Mayor Bass and other city officials used alternative communication platforms, such as Google Chat, which does not automatically store conversations unless the chat history setting is enabled.
According to reports, Los Angeles officials only enabled chat history on January 14—several days after the fire and after multiple media organizations had submitted requests for digital communications.
KTLA filed a public records request on January 15 for messages involving Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley. The Los Angeles Times had already submitted a similar request on January 10. By January 13, city officials were reportedly discussing whether to disable Google Chat altogether.
If Bass and other officials relied on Google Chat or other ephemeral messaging systems, it remains unclear
whether those communications were redacted, deleted, or simply never preserved.
The lack of transparency surrounding the mayor’s communications during a critical emergency response has raised alarm among legal experts.
“The mayor and the fire chief are
public servants employed by the citizens of Los Angeles,” said legal analyst Alison Triessl. “The best way to build trust is through full transparency in government. Conversely, the quickest way to erode that trust is for officials to work in secrecy, hiding behind disappearing text messages.”
SMa.r.t.
Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow
On January 28th, 2025, the City Council did a wise thing and agreed to continue the process, for 30 days, of negotiating an agreement to revitalize the abandoned Civic Center Auditorium. These negotiations had been moving forward for months (as expected for such a monumental endeavor) between the City of Santa Monica and the music consortium RPG (Revitalization Partners
etc.) will enhance and improve the visitors’ and performers’ experience, adding to their desire to attend musical events here. Fourth, there are no nearby mid-size performing arts venues (the Broad Auditorium seats only 500 people). And finally, the High School’s Barnum Hall and Greek theater are nearby (but far enough away to avoid sound interference) so that simultaneous music events could occur in a music festival format, drawing a larger audience base. There is virtually no midsize music venue with all these significant advantages in the LA basin.
A credible partner
The City ran the Civic Auditorium for
in some forgotten corner of the City, but this highly visible building has one of the most distinguished pedigrees of any building in Santa Monica. There are 6 criteria for a landmark in Santa Monica, but a building qualifies as a landmark if it meets only one of the criteria. Most buildings meet only one or two criteria. However, this building checks ALL six of the boxes:
1. It signifies an important cultural element of the City: Hundreds of important cultural icons and groups played here, from Frank Sinatra to the Supremes, to the Beach Boys, to U2, to Billy Joel, to the Rolling Stones, to
Group). That group was proposing to the City that it would enter into a longterm lease and provide the landmarked building with substantial improvements, including seismic upgrading, handicap accessibility, a modern sound system, acoustic and seating improvements, and other significant upgrades. When completed RPG would then operate it as a signature 21st century music venue. We are now almost ready to close this deal and to negotiate the final details, so SMart (Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow) hopes the project does not get derailed.
This is a deal the City can’t and shouldn’t refuse. We now have a perfect storm for resurrecting this underperforming City asset. All the pieces are now in place to reactivate this building as a musical Mecca for the following reasons: Location, location, location
This approximately 2500-seat 1958 auditorium is perfectly located as a music destination. First, it is at the end of two significant transit arteries (the 10 freeway and the expo line), making it easy access for the entire 10 millionperson metropolis. It is also just 20 minutes from LAX, likewise making it easy access for visiting performing stars and their adoring fans. Second, it is surrounded on three sides by seven adjacent major hotels, again providing easy accommodations for visitors and performers. Third, The city’s beach culture and known close by amenities (e.g., the Pier, the 3rd Street promenade,
55 years before it closed in 2013 because the City did not have a way to raise the millions of dollars ($50M to$150M were being discussed) to do all the necessary improvements. Also, the City did not have the staff and skill set to manage and market a 21st-century music venue. After an extensive search and testing various alternatives, its taken a dozen years to find a credible partner who can manage such a turn around for this important building. RPG is the best and probably only credible partner that the City can find. RPG are a demonstrably successful music team that has years of experience in revitalizing old venues for new music uses. As an example of their capabilities, while two of their principals lost their homes in the Palisades Fire in just two weeks, they still managed to stage Fire Aid, a dual-venue televised fundraising extravaganza that raised $100 million and counting for the victims of the fire. Such civic spirit, combined with decades of connections with hundreds of performers even at a time of grievous personal loss, is an incredible testament to their qualifications and stamina needed for this project. We are fortunate to have them onboard.
A significant landmark
If the building has so many expensive deficiencies, why not just tear it down and sell the land? The City is broke and needs the money, so why not just cash out now? Such an approach would make sense if this was, for example, just an ordinary warehouse or office building
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2. It has artistic or aesthetic
Ella Fitzgerald, to Bruce Springsteen, to Prince, the list goes on and on and on. If you saw the entire list of all music stars that have performed here it would blow your mind.
value:
while a simple overall shape, the detailing and shape of the dynamic front spires, canopy, and screen wall capture the exuberance and optimism of midcentury modern architecture.
3. It is identified with historic events or personages (see item#1 above): in the early sixties, this building, among its many roles, hosted the Academy Awards: it was the sexiest auditorium in the late 50’s and early 60’s to have such a signature event. It also symbolizes a boom period of Santa Monica history when we could still invest in symbolic and real support for the arts.
4. It is valuable for the study of architectural trends, construction methods, aesthetic considerations of its time: the movable stage was revolutionary and was a significant multipurpose element, the entrance esplanade had a distinctive 50’s reflective pool (now covered), and the sculpted swooping side and arched roof are also symbolic (and low cost) ways of trying to break out of the box which has finally been fully achieved by subsequent architects like Frank Gehry among others.
5. It is associated with a famous architect, Welton Becket’ (1902-1969), whose firm is the architect of record for auditorium, and he lived for a time in Santa Monica. The project architect working for Becket, Louis Naidorf, is still alive today at age 97 and is the person who actually did the design for the auditorium. In a large firm like Becket’s, it is not unusual to have the project architect (not the firm owner) do the actual design work. Becket’s firm designed countless buildings, including the futuristic Theme Restaurant at LAX, the Capital Records Building in Hollywood (the first circular office building), the Mark Taper Forum, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion etc., etc. At its time, Becket and Associates was one of the largest architectural firms in
the world.
6. It is a unique location and an established visual feature: its a cultural icon facing down its commercial counterpart, Santa Monica Place, at the other end of Main Street. It maintains pride of place anchoring confidently the South corner of our public Civic Center Complex.
Because it is such a super qualified distinguished landmark for our City, it is not surprising the it is also a Nationally Registered Landmark, which brings with it substantial potential tax advantages for the renovation process. This is an architectural gem of value not just to Santa Monica but to our whole country.
A beloved Icon
Everyone who has lived in Santa Monica for any length of time has some connection to this building. If you love live music, you may have had the awesome experience of seeing one or many of your stars perform there. If you were a music student in the public schools music programs, you might played in the annual school musician extravaganza called Stairway to the Stars. If you loved sports, you might have seen the American Fencing National championships there. If you loved cats, you might have gone to a cat show there. If you were interested in ecology, you might have browsed at an ecological products fair there. If you were interested in going to college, you might have attended a college fair in this auditorium. If you were interested in Civic issues, you might have participated in a meeting or workshop in the meeting rooms next to the main hall (while the main hall was closed for seismic reasons, the adjacent meeting rooms were considered seismically safe for use in the last 12 years). In other words, everyone has had an important experience of this building in its countless capacities. By providing so many rewarding
NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF
Miguel M. Chaidez aka Miguel Chaidez Montenegro aka Miguel Chaidez
To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of Miguel M. Chaidez aka Miguel Chaidez Montenegro aka Miguel Chaidez
A Petition for Probate has been filed by Sasha L. Collins in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Superior Court Case No. 25STPB02127
The Petition for Probate requests that Sasha L Collins be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.
The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.
The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.
A hearing on the petition will be held in Los Angeles County Superior Court as follows: Date: March 28, 2025, Time: 8:30 am. Dept.: 5 The address of the court: 111 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.
If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or a contingent creditor of the deceased, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.
Other California statues and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.
You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk.
Petitioner: Sasha L. Collins 297122 Myers, Widders, Gibson, Jones and Feingold – 39 N. California St. Ventura, CA 93001
Published in the Santa Monica Mirror, 03/07/2025, 03/14/2025, and 03/21/2025.
experiences to so many for two-thirds of a century, it has become beloved by virtually all its visitors and residents. To lose this building would obliterate all those positive memories.
While there are negative memories for the Black neighborhood that was destroyed to make the Civic center complex (see the April Banks sculpture at Bel Mar Park), the destruction of one cultural asset is not righted by destroying another cultural asset. Two wrongs do not make a right.
Too valuable to abandon
Some say the City is too poor to rehabilitate this cultural asset. That’s the beauty of the RPG proposal: the City does not have to pony up any money for the rehab since the RPG is funding the entire rehab. But even with no cash investment today, the City will still get all the long-term benefits of increased parking fees, sales taxes, hotel occupancy taxes, business taxes, and advertising value from the increased business activity of having a functioning iconic music venue in its center. Those who are considering selling the land and demolishing it (if at all legal) would have to consider not just the irreparable loss of this icon but also the destructive impact to all landmarks nationwide, as they now would be all consequently endangered. Destroying a nationally registered landmark when a viable path for its rehabilitation is already here would be snatching defeat from the jaws of victory and will make Santa Monica
a cultural pariah. The resurrection of the Civic Auditorium is supported by many individuals and groups, including but not limited to Save the Civic and the Santa Monica Conservancy.
So this is a significant local and national landmark, at a great location, with a credible rehabilitation partner, and beloved by all: it is now time for the City Council to finish the job ASAP: conclude the negotiations with RPG and start the process envisioned in the negotiated agreement to bring the Civic back to life. We are so close to giving this building a new life. Now is not the time to vacillate: Its time to Bring Back the Music.
By Mario Fonda-Bonardi AIA
S.M.a.r.t Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow
Mario Fonda-Bonardi AIA, Robert H. Taylor AIA, Architect, Dan Jansenson, Architect & Building and Fire-Life Safety Commission, Samuel Tolkin Architect & Planning Commissioner, Michael Jolly, AIR-CRE Jack Hillbrand AIA Landmarks Commissioner Architect.Phil Brock SM Mayor (Ret)
This is an update of the article that appeared February 1, 2025
For previous articles, see www. santamonicaarch.wordpress.com/writing
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SANTA MONICA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Dr. Nancy Greenstein, Chair; Dr. Sion Roy, Vice Chair; Dr. Luis Barrera Castañón; Anastasia Foster; Dr. Margaret Quiñones-Perez; Dr. Tom Peters; Rob Rader; Kathryn E. Jeffery, Ph.D., Superintendent/President
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