After the January 2025 Eaton and Palisades fires left behind barren burn scars that have since turned back into flammable regrowth, Los Angeles County moved to step up vegetation management on thousands of empty lots in unincorporated Altadena and Sunset Mesa—
For many residents in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades-adjacent Sunset Mesa, the hardest part of surviving the January 2025 mega-fires is that the danger didn’t stay behind when the flames moved on.
When the Eaton and Palisades fires roared across the Altadena area and the coastal Santa Monica Mountains in January 2025. the flames were fueled in part by accumulations of bone-dry chaparral. brush and other vegetation. The fires eviscerated many of the plants and trees in and around the burn zones. leaving behind barren lots and charred swaths of parkland.
Nearly one-and-a-half years later. a different kind of worry has taken hold: native and invasive grasses. bushes and trees have begun to regrow. weaving flammable greenery across the landscape. At the same time. many owners of homes and businesses that burned down are focused on rebuilding. navigating a byzantine process. and trying to sell their lots rather than maintaining properties.
Those choices have neighbors watching the ground line by line. Some people whose homes or businesses survived say they’re increasingly concerned about the risks posed by surrounding lots that have become overgrown. with heightened urgency as the region heads into peak fire season after four months with minimal precipitation.
The back-and-forth has become familiar in neighborhoods near Los Angeles County wildlands. Keeping the encroaching natural world at bay is a constant struggle for residents, local agencies, utilities and property owners—where vegetation can creep just beyond fencelines and backyards.
Earlier this month, that tension led the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to act. In a measure approved unanimously by the board. co-authored by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey Horvath. the county moved to ensure that thousands of empty lots in unincorporated Altadena and Sunset Mesa are not left untended.
Barger and Horvath represent Altadena and Sunset Mesa, respectively. Their motion calls on multiple county departments to develop a plan to ensure that vegetation is effectively managed in both communities as well as on nearby county land.
“[R]esidents have expressed growing concern regarding residential properties where vegetation has become severely overgrown,” the motion said.
The supervisors argued that cleaning up the landscape is necessary to reduce wildfire risk. while also insisting the county must recognize what many property owners are already carrying. The motion calls for a “solutions-oriented approach” that provides resources and assistance aimed at encouraging voluntary compliance rather than relying on punitive enforcement.
Horvath said residents are stretched thin. “We have concerns from residents who have vegetation growing on their properties and are already struggling with insurance payments and trying to make ends meet. ” she said in an interview. “And we have residents who just lived through — and escaped narrowly being impacted by — the fires. and don’t want the vegetation that’s growing nearby to become a hazard for them or their nearby neighborhood.”.
Barger, in a statement, pointed to the timing as well. “These communities are working hard to rebuild. and overgrown lots pose a real threat to that progress and to the neighbors living right next door. ” she said. “I want County resources working on this problem now, before another fire season puts more lives and property at risk.”.
The measure directs the county’s Department of Public Works, its nascent Disaster Recovery Rebuild Authority, L.A. County Fire and other county departments to deliver a report next month. The report is expected to include recommendations for addressing vegetation management needs of fire-scorched properties and how to fund those efforts.
The supervisors described the approach as emphasizing education, defensible-space assistance, and non-punitive mitigation as preferred first steps. According to Barger’s statement, the plan is meant to help people act before another fire season turns the regrowth into a new flashpoint.
Public Works has already started working with Neighbors Helping Neighbors and the Conservation Corps to remove brush and vegetation from private properties. said Kerjon Lee. a spokesperson for the department. “We’re removing roughly 50-60 bags of green waste a day from 260 properties,” Lee said via email.
The county is also tackling vegetation beyond suburban streets in Altadena and Sunset Mesa. Efforts include pile burn and goat grazing projects in the Santa Monica Mountains and San Gabriel Valley.
Horvath said the county hopes to secure tens of millions of dollars in state funding for additional brush clearance, fuel modification, home hardening and other initiatives.
The Board’s vote lands with the familiar dread of wildfire season approaching—one that residents know can arrive quickly. and can spread along the contours of what grows back. In this case, the county’s question is not whether vegetation regrows after a burn. It’s whether enough people—and enough public help—can keep the regrowth from becoming fuel again.
Los Angeles County Altadena Sunset Mesa Eaton fire Palisades fire wildfire risk vegetation management defensible space chaparral chaparral regrowth Disaster Recovery Rebuild Authority Kathryn Barger Lindsey Horvath