DATE: 11/05/2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Planning & Development Department
2025-416
REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
SUBJECT:
GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT 2025-0002 TO UPDATE THE WILDFIRE HAZARD
SEVERITY ZONE MAP IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY ELEMENT TO BE CONSISTENT
WITH THE FIRE HAZARD SEVERITY ZONES MAP ISSUED BY THE OFFICE OF THE
STATE FIRE MARSHAL (CITY OF CORONA FIRE DEPARTMENT)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
This staff report asks the City Council to approve General Plan Amendment 2025-0002 (GPA2025-0002), amending the Public Safety Element of the General Plan to update the Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) Map. The map was updated by the Office of the State Fire Marshal, and on June 4, 2025, the City Council adopted an ordinance amending Chapter 15.16 of the Corona Municipal Code to adopt the updated FHSZ map. The updated map went into effect on July 4, 2025. GPA2025-0002 establishes consistency with CMC Chapter 15.16 and the map issued by the State Fire Marshal.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
That the City Council:
a. Approve General Plan Amendment 2025-0002 as recommended by the Planning and Housing Commission.
b. Adopt Resolution No. 2025-105 approving an amendment to the City’s General Plan to update the Wildfire Hazard Severity Zone Map as part of Cycle 3 of General Plan Amendments for calendar year 2025 (GPA2025-0002).
BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
The Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) is responsible for identifying Fire Hazard Severity Zones (FHSZ) throughout California. These zones are categorized as Moderate, High, or Very High based on consistent statewide criteria and the expected fire hazard levels in those areas, as required by Government Code 51178. The different severity zones are based on fuel loading, slope, fire weather, and other relevant factors including areas where winds have been identified by the OSFM as a major cause of wildfire spread.
Local Implementation
Chapter 15.16 of the CMC establishes the City’s Fire Hazard Severity Zones. On March 24, 2025, the OSFM released an updated FHSZ map for the City of Corona. This map identifies the Local Responsibility Areas (LRAs) within Corona – areas for which the City is primarily responsible for providing wildfire protection. According to CAL FIRE, the updated map incorporates new scientific data, including member spread patterns and localized climate information, providing a more accurate representation of the areas within the City that are susceptible to wildfire. In addition, the updated map includes designations for Moderate and High zones within the City, whereas the previous version only included the designation for Very High.
Government Code Section 51179 requires local jurisdictions such as the City of Corona to designate, by ordinance, the fire hazard severity zones within 120 days of receiving the updated FHSZ map from the OSFM. On May 14, 2025, the Corona Fire Department held a community meeting on the updated FHSZ map for the City. On June 4, 2025, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 3418, amending Chapter 15.16 of the CMC to adopt the updated FHSZ map. The updated map went into effect July 4, 2025.
ANALYSIS:
The City’s 2020-2040 General Plan was adopted by the City Council on June 3, 2020.
The General Plan includes a Public Safety Element, which contains the FHSZ map under Figure PS-11. The version currently in the General Plan was in effect at the time of the General Plan’s adoption and must be updated to reflect the version recently issued by the OSFM and adopted by the City Council.
GPA2025-0002 replaces the existing FHSZ map, with the updated map released in 2025.
The map identifies the Moderate (yellow), High (orange), and Very High (red) fire hazard zones within the City’s boundaries, as well as areas outside the boundaries located within the City’s Sphere of Influence (SOI) areas, which include Coronita, Home Gardens, El Cerrito, Temescal Valley, Eagle Valley, and a few other smaller pockets of unincorporated land.
In addition, the updated map distinguishes among the different agencies that have primary responsibility for wildfire protection:
Local Responsibility Areas – Local Agency (City of Corona) State Responsibility Areas – State of California
Federal Responsibility Areas – Federal Government
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
GPA2025-0002 is a City-initiated amendment; therefore, no fees were associated with this application.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
This General Plan Amendment is exempted from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines, the “common sense” exemption. This exemption applies where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility the activity may have a significant effect on the environment. The proposed General Plan Amendment (GPA2025-0002) qualifies, as it merely replaces the existing fire hazard severity zones map (Figure PS-11 of the Corona General Plan) with the updated map issued by the Office of the State Fire Marshal on March 24, 2025, and adopted by the Corona City Council on June 4, 2025.
PLANNING AND HOUSING COMMISSION ACTION:
At its meeting on October 20, 2025, the Planning and Housing Commission considered the subject matter and took the following action:
Motion was made, seconded (Siqueland/Vernon), and carried unanimously with Commissioner Longwell absent, that the City Council find the project exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and adopt Resolution No. 2674 granting GPA2025-0002 as part of Cycle 3 of General Plan Amendments for 2025. The minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting are included as Exhibit 3.
PREPARED BY: JOANNE COLETTA, PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR ATTACHMENTS:
1. Exhibit 1 - Resolution No. 2025-105
2. Exhibit 2 - Planning and Housing Commission staff report
3. Exhibit 3 - Draft Minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting of October 20, 2025