The California State Legislature adopted the Public Records Act in 1968. It is designed to give the public access to information in the possession of public agencies. The Act also provides that public records shall be open for inspection during regular office hours of the agency. The public can inspect or receive a copy of any record unless the record is exempted from disclosure under the act.
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The proposed building shall be located within a maximum offset of the existing building footprint. The allowable offset shall be a maximum of 20% of the lot width and 20% of the lot depth, in the same direction as the lot width or depth, respectively. The proposed building shall comply with all applicable yard setback requirements. However, for a building that was damaged or destroyed by the Wildfire and had a nonconforming yard, the new structure may be rebuilt or relocated within the nonconforming yard, provided the nonconforming yard is not further reduced.
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Acceptable records shall include building permits, Certificate of Occupancy, County Assessor, and Coastal Commission. On a case by case basis, the Department may consider other photographic sources such as Google Maps and LiDAR.
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Under the Mayor’s Emergency Executive Order #1, DBS and other City departments will complete their initial reviews for building permits within 30 days. However, DBS has so far been able to complete the review within 10 days. Prior to permit issuance, other agency approval/clearances are required, as well as the customer addressing any plan check corrections, which may affect the timeline. Once all agency approval/clearances have been completed, DBS can issue the permit.
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LADBS will expedite review of all rebuild projects.
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The Governor's Executive Order and Mayor's Revised Emergency Executive Order #1 authorize that primary and accessory structures can be rebuilt that are in substantially the same location as, and do not exceed 110% of the footprint and height of, the primary and accessory structures that existed immediately before the Wildfires. This is often referred to as a "like-for-like" rebuild. Please see below regarding "like-for-like".
The project will need to comply with the current Building Codes.
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Relocating an existing detached garage and incorporating it to be part of the main dwelling as an attached garage is allowed and considered as an Eligible Project. The attached garage will not count towards the 110% footprint expansion provided the garage area is limited to a maximum of 400 square feet, and is one story in height.
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Reusing of the existing slab and foundation are allowed provided a licensed California engineer or architect has evaluated the foundation system and determines that it is in good condition. Documentation including observation and testing of the system will need to be provided to the Department for review and approval. In certain geological areas, further soils/geotechnical investigation may be required to evaluate the reuse of the foundation system.
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Yes. To assist homeowners in rebuilding after the 2025 wildfires and provide temporary living arrangements, under the Mayor's Emergency Executive Order No. 1, the placement of such structures on the property is allowed for up to three years, or while an active building permit is applicable to said property, whichever is longer. For more information, please see Temporary Housing For Fire Damaged Properties Information Bulletin
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The Department does not recommend any architects or engineers. Prior to hiring an architect or engineer, we recommend that you review their licensing information. For licensing information about architects, please visit the California Architects Board. For licensing information about engineers, please visit the California State Department of Consumer Affairs.
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The Department does not recommend any contractors. Prior to hiring a contractor, we recommend you to review their licensing information and proof of insurance. The California State Department of Consumer Affairs maintains an online tool to Check a Contractor License.
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