Winter 2008

This holiday season finds many people in our community without a home and having lost some, if not all, of their possessions as a result of the recent Tea Fire. This newsletter is devoted to topics related to the Tea Fire - or any fire. You can read below about a local forum scheduled for this Saturday, December 13, that will focus on suggestions on how to rebuild using fire resistant and environmentally friendly techniques and products. You can also read about one home that survived the Tea Fire because it was built using many of these techniques and products. Another article discusses how to care for fire damaged trees. And we also offer suggestions, based on our recent experience with fire victims, on how to make sure that your homeowner's policy adequately covers you in the event of a fire or other natural disaster. Wishing you peace and good tidings this holiday season!

Following the Tea Fire, many people not directly affected by the fire searched for ways to offer help. Professionals within the building industry asked themselves what they could offer. The result is a forum - From Ashes to Opportunity - Rebuilding After the Tea Fire - being offered this Saturday, December 13 from 9 a.m. to noon, at Montecito Covenant Church. This forum is designed to encourage victims of the recent Tea Fire to consider ways to "build back better" - to rebuild their home using proven fire resistant construction strategies that have the added potential of making their new home more environmentally friendly and energy efficient than the one they lost. Presenters, including local architects, builders, landscape architects, and fire officials, will draw on their expertise as well as local case studies of homes that have been built or rebuilt using these strategies. The goal is to inspire residents to take a moment before they rebuild the home they just lost and consider the range of possibilities available to them.

The forum is hosted by the Community Environmental Council and co-sponsored by the local chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the US Green Building Council, The Sustainability Project, Green Building Alliance, and the Santa Barbara Contractors Association.

Click here to learn more.

In the midst of the devastation created by the Tea Fire, there are a few stories of families whose homes escaped the fire unscathed. While some of these stories seem like simple twists of fate or, in some cases, miracles, there are a few people who strategically designed their homes to survive a fire. Marlene and David Berry are one of these stories. Although the Tea Fire surrounded their home, literally burning up to their front door, their house survived with hardly a trace of soot. Sure, they lost most of the plants in their fire resistant landscaping and there are marks from burning embers that landed on the wooden threshold of a door leading into their garage (the only non-metal threshold in their house). But their home is intact, along with everything in it. So, why were the Berrys so lucky? The answer: it wasn't just luck.

To learn more about the Berry home's fire resistant and green building elements click here.

There are numerous issues that survivors are dealing with following a fire: cleaning up debris, replacing homes and personal items, implementing erosion control methods, and getting on with life. One thing that can be overlooked are all the trees that burned along with the home and personal belongings. The first reaction might be - demolish and haul away all the vegetation along with the other debris. But, don't take hasty actions! Do not automatically cut down or cut back charred or defoliated trees. Trees that appear dead may likely be alive, depending on the intensity of the fire. Bill Spiewak, local arborist, has developed a list of steps to take to care for your trees following a fire. Patience and tender care are two of the key ingredients to helping your trees come back to life.

To learn more click here.

People don't often think about the type and amount of homeowner's insurance they have until it is too late. Unfortunately, many survivors of the Tea Fire are learning that now as they work with their insurance agent to determine just how much money they have to rebuild. There are ways to structure your insurance policy so ensure that it covers not only your home, but your possessions, auxiliary structures, landscape, temporary housing needs, and more.

The homeowner's insurance settlement and the funds available for rebuilding may be composed of the following sections:

Replacement cost - Dwelling A - Must be of a like/kind/quality to the previous structure. Start with the plans and add any additions/improvements (including non-permitted work and illegal conversions). Photos are helpful in establishing the quality level.
Plus - Code Upgrades - including Title 24 upgrades - This could add between 10-75% of the Replacement cost.
Plus - Contents - Contents coverage may only be paid as items are actually repurchased. Any remaining coverage could be negotiated as a cash payout between the homeowner and the insurance company.
Plus - Bid Costs - some insurance policies will pay for the cost of a complete bid. This must be approved by the adjustor up front.
Plus - Supplemental structures - This could include irrigation, detached garage, decks, outbuildings, solar, water tanks, etc.
Plus - Demolition - usually with a maximum limit around $10,000. Additional costs often erode the replacement cost allotment.
Plus - Preservation of property - erosion control
Less - Temporary living expenses - Often these expenses reduce the amount available to rebuild the home. The longer a homeowner rents, and the more they spend per month on temporary housing, the less they will have to rebuild once they use up any allotment allowed.

Unfortunately, Allen Associates had a number of clients who lost their homes in the Tea Fire. Other survivors have been calling our office as well, requesting assistance with everything from removing fire related debris, installing erosion control measures, and providing rebuilding estimates to their insurance company. The following are a few of the stories that have come in from Allen Associates staff as they have responded to these requests.

• " While the fire was burning, Allen Associates staff called clients to see what help they could provide. One client asked us to remove valuable art work from his home. Our team protected the art pieces in blankets and carried it in their trucks down to our Santa Barbara office to wait out the flames. The art work was returned a week later - this client did not lose his home.
• " The next morning, we checked in with all of our clients to see whether their homes survived.
• " Weather radars predicted significant storms only 10 days after the fire. The need to respond to this emergency came up extremely fast. Our crews were like an army of ants - installing silt fencing and straw waddles to protect the steep hillsides on people's property. One effort at a client's home on Mountain Drive was so impressive that cameras from Los Angeles news station KTLA stopped to film our work. The story aired on the LA news as rain was coming down only two nights before Thanksgiving.
• " One of our clients desperately wanted to save specimen oak trees that had burned on their property. These trees were significantly burned on the side closest to the home - where the fire had burned the longest and hottest. We asked a friend of our company - an arborist - to advise our client on how to ensure their trees had a higher chance of survival. We learned valuable information from this experience that we have since been able to share with others (see related story in this newsletter).
• " Another family also had burned oak trees on their property. They knew they needed to water the trees to help keep them alive, but they had lost water service as a result of the fire. Allen Associates staff brought in a water truck and filled the property owner's 500 gallon water tank so this family could save their trees - at no cost to the client.
• " Our staff has been scrambling to provide accurate cost estimates to people looking to rebuild their homes - structuring estimated costs to ensure that homeowners are able to recoup the maximum amount they will need to rebuild their home.