When the Coastal Fire broke out in Laguna Niguel in May of 2022 it piqued our awareness more than ever with regard to fire safety. The fire prompted a mandatory evacuation of 900 homes. In total, 200 acres burned, 20 structures were destroyed and 12 additional structures were damaged, not including numerous homes with smoke damage. Over 550 firefighters from across the region helped that day. From my home, I could see the dark smoke and one of the first things that came to mind, besides safety of life and property, was uh-oh – property insurance.

The insurance issue has been personal with my family. When my husband Eddie and I were dating we saw the issues his parents had to deal with after a tornado devastated his childhood home. I can remember my father-in-law spending countless hours on the phone fighting with the insurance company to repair the badly damaged home. Something didn’t feel right in that moment. Something was unjust about paying the premiums for decades and then when tragedy strikes spending hours on end fighting for every nickel. It was memorable.

I addition, I had the honor to serve (2007-2010) on the Belleair, Florida town council, situated right on the Gulf Coast Inter-Coastal waterway. For the five and a half years I was there, the insurance crisis in Florida dominated newspaper headlines and sadly, many of our residents lost coverage.

So naturally with all this history as soon as I was elected to the Laguna Niguel City Council, I started educating the public about the insurance issue. With California becoming increasingly less affordable by the minute, it’s a worthy effort that affects every one of my residents – both homeowners and renters are paying the price for rising insurance costs. Also of consequence, this summer, cities across Southern California are adopting updated fire maps as required by Cal Fire. What’s changing? First, there are now three different severity zones (Very High, High, and Moderate), up from just one zone. Second, many cities are seeing an increase of homes included in a severity zone that were not included on the previously adopted maps. In Laguna Niguel, for example, the area where we shoot off our fireworks landed in a High Fire Severity Zone and we had to make the tough, yet responsible decision to cancel our fireworks show and instead hold a drone show. If you haven’t seen your area’s updated maps yet, you should, since tougher laws have already been passed and are scheduled to go into affect in 2026. The implementation of these laws is to be determined, but worth looking into. With the increase of South Orange County homes in a severity zone, it is worth it to do your homework.

But, we are Americans! When things get tough, we dust off our pants and take things into our own hands and that is exactly what a “Firewise USA” community does! Lost your insurance? You may be able to get it back. Rising insurance costs? You may be eligible for a discount. Becoming a Firewise community, a program of the National Fire Protection Association, is a great solution and it could save your person, property and pocketbook. Firewise communities are formed with any cluster of homes (does NOT need to be an HOA) between 8 to 2,500 units. This means that city officials across the area can not make your city a Firewise community; you have to take it into your own hands.

I write you today to encourage your participation in this worthwhile effort. When my HOA (Marina Hills) became a Firewise community all I had to do was send the Firewise certificate in to my insurance company and we received $89 off our annual premium. I have heard that residents who lost their insurance were able to come back to the traditional insurance marketplace after their community became Firewise. Saving money isn’t the only benefit, the changes that take place in your community will keep you and your property safer from wildfires.

In Laguna Niguel we have 5 certified Firewise USA communities and others ambitiously seeking the designation (eg. Beacon Hill). These HOAs are either using their property management company or obtaining a super volunteer to fill out the application and make sure the community stays in compliance.

If you’d like to learn more, I invite you to attend our city’s Fire Resiliency Workshop on September 10 at 6PM at Crown Valley Community Center located at 29751 Crown Valley Parkway. We will have loads of information for you to bring home, but more importantly, you’ll hear from residents who have been through the process and can share their journey.

You can also visit: OCFA Ready, Set, Go or you can call the OCFA Ready, Set, Go line at 714-573-6774.

This tool, allows a resident to put their address in to determine their fire severity zone.

Thank you for your continued support and entrusting me to serve the residents of Laguna Niguel.

Council Member Stephanie Oddo was elected in 2022 to the Laguna Niguel City Council. She serves as Vice Chair of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency and Chair of the Orange County Housing and Community Development Commission. 

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