Resilient Los AngelesSally Richman | Public Information Officer & Manager,Performance Management & Resiliency PlanningHousing + Community Investment Department
Northridge earthquake: a housing disaster
Responding to Northridge
The 3-year old Housing Department took a crash course in housing recovery and related tenant protections
Professor Mary Comerio’s research on 1989 Loma Prieta quake housing recovery
1992 Hurricane Andrew
Small Business Administration disaster loans not available to properties financially ‘underwater’
Responding to Northridge (continued)
Realized alternative financing needed to rebuild damaged housing
Consulted housing experts and friends in Clinton Administration
$340 million in grants and loans from HUD - the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development – to repair damaged housing
Developed new rules to protect disaster displaced renters
Changes since Northridge
1998 - designed Systematic Code Enforcement Program (SCEP) to routinely inspect all rental housing
2004 - new focus on preparedness and housing recovery
2011-14 FEMA Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program (RCPGP) funding for disaster housing planning
Safety assessment desktop and mobile applications (Motion F-5 tablet and iPad) to facilitate post-disaster building assessment
Changes since Northridge (continued)
Mayor Garcetti:
Brought Dr. Lucy Jones to the city
Initiated a mandatory seismic retrofit program
Enabled Los Angeles to be one of 100 Resilient Cities with Rockefeller Foundation
Created a Chief Resilience Officer role which brings together city departments to interact in an interdisciplinary approach
Resiliency includes everyday conditions that City residents, workers and business owners struggle with in a broader, more
inclusive approach.