Why Pacific Palisades will never be the same after the California fires

Anne McCloy ^ | 1/13/25 | Anne McCloy

[DallasBiff]

“It’s ok, you can just rebuild.”

“At least not that many people died.”

These are the things people say to try to make it better.

The truth is, Pacific Palisades will never be the same after the deadly January 2025 wildfires that destroyed entire neighborhoods this past week. The latest official update says as many as 10,000 structures have been destroyed in the Palisades Fire, which is expected to be the costliest in U.S. history.

Pacific Palisades, the small ocean community wedged between Santa Monica to the south and Malibu to the north, is a little slice of heaven. Our family was only lucky enough to have a home there because my grandparents bought property decades before the area was discovered by Hollywood. According to my dad, they purchased the home in the 1100 block of Hartzell Street in 1951 for $25,000. The neighborhood has since been home to some of the highest property values in the country, but this week’s unprecedented fires have left it unrecognizable, and its future is suddenly uncertain

[mewzilla]

Did they vote for this?

Case in point...

https://laist.com/news/politics/2022-election-california-general-live-results-los-angeles-city-mayor-bass-caruso

“...The contest was a virtual dead heat on Election Night. Caruso pulled slightly ahead last Thursday, but since then Bass gained a steady lead....”

Sound familiar?

So, no, the likely didn’t vote for this.

Californians: If you want to save your state from Deep State, then SECURE YOUR DAMN ELECTIONS.

[mewzilla]

And every state and local government in the US should receive the DOGE treatment, too...

Good Things Roll Downhill, Too - GOP Iowa Governor to Establish State-Level DOGE

[linMcHlp]

DEI Word Salad Generator

drip . . . drip . . . drip . . .

[EVO X]

James Woods tweeted yesterday that his Pacific Palisades home was still intact.

[Jolla]

It will take years and years to rebuild and that is a lot of construction noise and traffic, the landscape will take 15 years to be looking good after its planted.

I would buy a place in San Diego to enjoy, if I was going to stay in Calif.

[If You Want It Fixed - Fix It]

Rebuild for fire or earthquake? Kind of opposing materials.

How about homeless tents? Nomadic.

[DennisR]

Well said...

[TalBlack]

“How do you even encourage someone who lost everything?“

Don’t even try, just send them what money you can I guess.

[Billthedrill]

I wonder if the HOLLYWOOD sign is still there.

Totally not a faked image.

Pacific Palisades will be rebuilt, to be sure. Whatever else, it was what it was because it was prime land. I'm sure the folks at Blackrock, Vanguard, and State Street are salivating at the prospect of turning the place into a rent mine but that doesn't really address just how much habitation the place can support even with good infrastructure management which looks to be nowhere on the horizon. The brush will still grow and the wind will still blow.

I singled out the Big Three because rebuilding is going to take a load of loot and that's where the money is. The fight over zoning and building codes is going to be an epic struggle of bureaucrats dazzled by the prospect of their slice off the top, and as long as the people involved continue to be the ones who are now, that isn't much cause for optimism. There is hope, though. I hear there's a guy in DC who is an experienced real estate developer. Maybe they should listen to him.

[laplata]

Very good post.

The fires are waking up some on the Left who were burned out.

[EVO X]

I’ve seen the destruction maps for PP and it is brutal for several areas. My guess is about a third of the homes are undamaged or have limited damage. At this point the map is incomplete. That said, there is something to work with in restoring the community.

[Kudsman]

Plant Republican seeds. New growth feasts on the sunlight, nutrients and Carbon Dioxide. Js

[Billthedrill]

Oh, yeah, it is/was a gorgeous location - been through there quite a few times. But I’m not sure the middle class residents of which there are/were plenty will be able to finance what it will cost to rebuild their part of it. When your house is fully insured and the costs of rebuilding suddenly double, what are you going to do? That said, I agree that a community of some sort will almost certainly arise around what is left. What it will actually look like remains to be seen. I’ll be pulling for them.

[EVO X]

I haven’t spent any time at PP but have spent time near Palos Verdes. It is the same concept. Numerous rich people intermingle with long time home owners that can only afford to stay because of prop 13 rules..