"Cal Fire updated Saratoga's Fire Hazard Severity Zone map in June, classifying some southwestern portions of the city as moderate or high fire hazard zones. These zones are determined based on an area's physical characteristics, like slope, vegetation, winds and weather. Saratoga's WUI map visualizes the risk of living in an area where human development meets the undeveloped wildland. It informs the building codes of people living in those areas to manage the risk in case there is a destructive wildfire in the area."
"Chief Building Official Aaron Yuma presented two options for extending the city's WUI boundary. Council approved the map that hugs the perimeter of the extended Cal Fire map, following Oak Place to Wildcat Creek to Douglas Lane to Fruitvale Avenue to Crisp Avenue to El Camino Grande to Montevista Drive. City staff recommended this option because it "achieves a practical balance between aligning the city's WUI boundary with the latest Cal Fire hazard map and (maintains) community support.""
"The second option stretched from Herriman Avenue to Montauk Drive Connection Trail to Montauk Drive to Fruitvale Avenue to San Marcos Road to Odd Fellows Drive to Chester Avenue to Sobey Road before joining at the existing WUI boundary. Yuma said staff was concerned that there wasn't enough data to justify a larger buffer. Vice Mayor Chuck Page said the first option "makes the most sense for Saratoga" and that "expanding something arbitrarily doesn't make things safer, at least right off the bat.""
Saratoga updated its Wildland-Urban Interface boundary to reflect Cal Fire's June revisions to the city's Fire Hazard Severity Zone map, which reclassified some southwestern areas as moderate or high risk based on slope, vegetation, winds and weather. The revised WUI map visualizes where development meets wildland and informs building codes to reduce wildfire damage. Chief Building Official Aaron Yuma presented two boundary-extension options; the council approved the option that follows the perimeter of the Cal Fire map along specific streets. City staff recommended that option as a practical balance between Cal Fire alignment and maintaining community support, while noting insufficient data for a larger buffer.
Read at The Mercury News
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