Fremont City Council Meeting: 07/08/25 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Fire Department
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Code Adoptions & Amendments
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5504) DOC ID: 5504
Updated: 7/3/2025 8:55 AM by Dina Lewis Page 1
DESIGNATION OF FIRE HAZARD ZONES IN THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE
FIRE AREA OF THE CITY AND RE-ESTABLISHMENT OF THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE FIRE AREA - Consideration of an ordinance that will maintain existing vegetation management, defensible space and fire-resistant building standard requirements in the Hazardous Fire Area by amending the State of California's newly released fire hazard severity designations for the City of Fremont and establishing the Wildland-Urban Interface Fire Area.
Contact Persons:
Name: Eric Govan Gregory Miller
Title: Fire Marshal Deputy Fire Marshal
Div/Dept: Fire Department Fire Department
Phone: 510-494-4200 510-494-4200
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: Pursuant to California Government Code Section 51179, cities are required to adopt updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) maps and designations provided by the California State Fire Marshal (CAL FIRE). CAL FIRE released new Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) maps for Local Responsibility Areas (LRA) on February 24, 2025, following a statewide update, which designated areas in the City as “Moderate,” “High” and “Very High” fire hazard severity zones. This ordinance would adopt CAL FIRE’s 2025 FHSZ map, with amendments retaining additional areas previously classified by the City as Very High fire hazard severity zones in accordance with changes in state law, and to continue current fire protection standards previously established by the City in and around the hill areas of the City.
BACKGROUND: In 1980, the City of Fremont (City) adopted Ordinance No. 1416 establishing the areas east of Mission Boulevard, east of Interstate 680, the Ardenwood Historic Farm and Coyote Hills Regional Park as Very High Fire Hazardous Severity Zone Area (VHFHSZ). The City Council also previously approved a VHFHSZ on December 4, 2007 via Ordinance 33-2007.
The VHFHSZ designation reflected the potential in these areas for a wildfire to ignite, spread rapidly, and overwhelm local firefighting resources due to the fuel load, terrain, winds, and other factors. In the 2007 code adoption cycle, the California Building Standards Commission adopted heighten fire protection building standards for structures located in the fire hazard severity zones identified by the CAL FIRE. These heightened standards are very similar to those adopted by the City for the VHFHSZ Area.
The 2025 CAL FIRE map reclassifies some areas of the City as “Moderate” and “High” fire hazard zones, with only a small area identified as VHFHSZ within the City’s urban-wildland interface area. The Fire Department has reviewed the new CAL FIRE maps and determined that the existing zones previously designated by the City as VHFHSZ, approved by City Council in 2007, should continue and remain appropriate and sufficient for the purposes of fire safety regulation, including defensible space, building code enforcement, and public safety and outreach.
Council Staff Report (ID # 5504) Meeting of July 8, 2025 Updated: 7/3/2025 8:55 AM by Dina Lewis Page 2
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: This ordinance would adopt CAL FIRE’s 2025 FHSZ map and designations, with local amendments continuing the City’s prior designation of additional areas as VHFHSZ, in accordance with Government Code Section 51179(b). Continuation of these additional VHFHSZ areas in the City is necessary in order to implement the requirements of Government Code Section 51182 for effective fire protection within the area, considering local conditions and historical information, such as the prevalence of fire resistive construction features, fuel and topography, lack of natural firebreaks which limit the spread of embers, and others. Based on past surveys and staff experience with fire hazards and the standards currently in place in these areas, staff recommend retaining the designation of VHFHSZ for these areas, which locations and boundaries are depicted in the fire hazard severity zone map attached as Exhibit A to the proposed ordinance.
The VHFHSZ designation will trigger fire protective building standards established by the 2022 California Building Standards Code for Wildland-Urban Interface Fire Areas. These standards are in the process of being updated and will be included in the next editions of the 2025 California Building and Fire Codes. By adopting the 2025 CAL FIRE Local Responsibility Area map for the City without altering the existing VHFHSZ designations, Fremont maintains continuity in wildfire risk management while complying with state law.
This action supports the City’s Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) mitigation program and ensures regulatory consistency with previously adopted fire codes.
FISCAL IMPACT: There are no direct fiscal impacts to the City.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The action is not a project as defined by Pub. Res. Code Section 21065, and is exempt from CEQA review per: (1) CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(2), as exempt continuing administrative, policy and procedure making, or maintenance activities; (2) CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(4), as the creation of a government funding mechanism or other government fiscal activity that does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment; (3) CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), which exempts projects when it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Draft Ordinance- Wildland Urban Interface Area Fire Hazard Severity Zones • Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) Map
RECOMMENDATION: Waive full reading and introduce an ordinance updating Fremont Municipal Code Chapter 15.65 to adopt CAL FIRE’s 2025 FHSZ map and designations, with local amendments continuing the City’s prior designation of additional areas as Very High fire hazard severity zones.