Share your suggestions for projects, policies, and programs that you would like to see included in Piedmont's 5-year roadmap for reducing risk from natural hazards like earthquakes and wildfires.

Piedmont faces two catastrophic risks, earthquake and wildfire. Many Piedmont residents have used the Brace & Bolt program or otherwise reinforced our homes, but wildfire is one where little has yet been done.

I believe as a first step the City should encourage home hardening, including mesh and/or Vulcan Vent coverings for vents, replacing wood shingle roofs with Class A roofs, replacing wood fences (especially those abutting homes) with non-combustible fence materials, and removing flammable vegetation near homes. The City could provide a list of contractors with this experience, provide PSAs or other information to raise awareness of how much of a difference home hardening can make, and potentially find a source of funding to assist Piedmont homeowners with this work (similar to the Brace & Bolt program).

The harder questions are whether to update our Building Code to (a) require these steps (including a Zone 0 requirement) for new construction, and (b) whether to go further and require it for existing construction, perhaps with a 5 year phase-in. I would support (a) and with climate change (b) may be needed as well. Even if (b) were not adopted and instead these steps were encouraged, the PFD might want to have PSA stating that, in the event of a wildfire, its crews will prioritize saving houses that have been hardened.