The Trails at Lyons Canyon project proposes once again to put senior housing in a dangerous very high fire hazard severity zone. The Eaton and Palisades fires caused 29 deaths, most of them elderly residents who could not evacuate. This project proposes that almost 10% of the new units will be deed-restricted rental apartments for very-low-income senior citizens. Senior citizens, particularly low-income seniors, experience increased vulnerability to hazards according to a study in Applied Gerontology (2020). Not only do they often have physical or medical impediments to evacuation, but also, they may not have enough money to afford to evacuate.
The senior rentals are proposed as a four-story building. How will the seniors evacuate if the elevator doesn’t work because the electricity is turned off as it now often is in windy wildfire situations? How will seniors with mobility problems or other health issues get out? According to news articles, heart attacks may increase in the face of evacuation orders. That certainly would seem a likely outcome of running down four flights of stairs or being stuck in a wheelchair on the fourth floor and unable to evacuate at all. We must rethink whether placing residents in high fire hazard areas really makes sense. I urge the county to deny this project.
Susann Rizzo
Valencia
