Pali Fire Meeting Provided New Information

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Today, February 10, empty dump trucks were lined up on Temescal Canyon Road from the playground all the way to Bowdoin Street.

Lou Kamer, Anthony Marquleas and Ben Perlman formed 1Pali to combine all the Palisades communities who have started different venues and emails to communicate.

The goal is to meet weekly at 6 p.m. and to provide information and to seek answers that the community needs during this rebuild.

This February 10 meeting, included Brad Sherwood, a fire survivor from the Tubbs Fire in Santa Rosa. “I’m part of the survivor’s club,” he said and urged that this community to form a nonprofit. “There are a tremendous number of resources you can get.

“Ther are already nonprofits who want to hear how the money should be spent,” Sherwood said, and urged residents to make those decisions, rather elected officials. ”Donations should go to the community not the county.”

There have been a lot of questions about Phase 2 of the rebuild when the Army Corp of Engineers come in for the debris removal.

Marguleas said that the “ACE does not remove patios, driveways, swimming pools or trees, that will be the homeowner’s responsibility. “The government pays for Phase 1 and for Phase 2. They will ask to be reimbursed by insurance for any money that is not used for driveway or tree removal.

“If there’s anything left after the homeowner/insurance removes those items, then that would go to the ACE.”

Sherwood was asked about his experience with the ACE. “We did Right of Entry (ROE). The fires were in October, our lot was cleared by the end of December.”

He noted that the people who did not grant ROE, generally a longer wait and higher costs. The reasons included high demand and a scarcity of dump trucks to haul stuff out.

Marguleas said, “We have been told there is a three-to-five-day notice that they will give. How were they to work with?”

“I received a call from ACE on December 26,” said Sherwood, who was at a different location over Christmas, but returned home. “They were wonderful to work with. I was there every day, and they followed my specific instructions.” He also mentioned he brought doughnuts and had a taco truck come in to keep workers happy.

Marguleas also gave a quick update about fire information at the beginning of the meeting. He noted that more than $650 million had been raised for fire victims.

He said that L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ Tsar Steve Soboroff, who was appointed on January 17 to lead the recovery for a 90-day period for $500,000 compensation would now work strictly in the Palisades on the Historic Village area, the library and the recreation center, and would forego the pay.

Phase I is supposed to be completed by the end of February.

He also touched on the real estate market. A property in the Highlands, which had burned, was sold for $1.3 million, but prior to the fire that land had been worth $1.7 million.

Marguleas also said that there is a list of 900 people who are accused of price gouging.

To take the survey of what you as a resident need or what you think the community needs, register at Palizoom.com. These meetings are also recorded so that you can play them back.

Organizers say “1Pali is by residents for residents. We need to come together now, otherwise will be responding to our elected official’s [ideas/plans].”

(Editor’s note: one resident said she has spent hours and hours  in different zoom meetings and generally picked up one little kernel of information after hours of listening. The meeting held tonight was concise, held to an hour and contained loads of information.)

To gain access to Pacific Palisades this morning from Pacific Coast Highway was about two hours. Northbound traffic stretched back to the California Incline.

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