On the Friday before Thanksgiving, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced “a major milestone” in the recovery from January’s wildfires that razed 13,000 homes across the region: A four-bedroom house in Pacific Palisades had received its final approval from the city, making it the first house to be rebuilt after the fires. “The Palisades community has been through an unimaginable year, and my heart breaks for every family that won’t be able to be home this holiday season,” Bass said in a statement. “But today is an important moment of hope.”
But Bass didn’t mention the family that would be moving back into the finished property. That’s because there isn’t one.
A homebuilding company, Thomas James Homes, owns the parcel. Before the fire, it sought permits to bulldoze the vacant home on the site and build a new one. The fire took care of the demolition. The new house isn’t planned as a place to live, but rather will serve as a model property for what the company could build for Palisades residents who’d lost their homes. Reaction to Bass’ celebration was swift. Wildfire survivors called the mayor’s announcement tone deaf and claimed the project shouldn’t count as a wildfire rebuild. By the next morning, Bass had deleted her social media posts touting the development.