Los Altos Safety Element

Los Altos Safety Element

Safety Element

The Safety Element plays a critical role in the city’s long-range planning efforts, specifically addressing protection against a range of natural and human-caused hazards. Its primary objective is to inform decision-making related to these hazards, ensuring the safety of residents, workers, and visitors. The Safety Element focuses on mitigating risks associated with various disasters, including:

  • Seismic and geologic hazards: Such as earthquakes, landslides, and subsidence.
  • Fire hazards: Including wildfire risk management.
  • Hazardous materials: Addressing potential spills and their impact.
  • Flooding: Implementing strategies to minimize flood-related risks.
  • Other hazards: Such as climate change impacts, crime, hazardous materials spills.

Under California State law (Government Code Section 65302), every city must create and adopt a general plan—a comprehensive framework that outlines the community’s long-term vision. Within this general plan, the Safety Element stands as one of the nine State-mandated components.

How can the public be involved in the process and stay informed?

The City is committed to involving the public in the development of the Safety Element. Opportunities for engagement include an online survey that will be available in late spring. Two in-person workshops will be held during the summer and fall of 2024. The City will also make the Draft Safety Element available for public review, which is anticipated to be released in Winter 2024/2025. Planning Commission and City council meetings that are open to the public are planned for the Spring of 2025.

To stay informed about upcoming Safety Element Updates, you can sign up for email updates HERE . For any further inquiries, please feel free to email safetyelement@losaltosca.gov.

Community Survey

Your input is invaluable as we work towards updating the Safety Element. This survey should only take around 10 minutes to complete, and your responses will remain completely anonymous and confidential.

Please take a moment to share your thoughts by accessing the survey at the following Los Altos Safety Element Update Survey (surveymonkey.com).

 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Safety Element?

The Safety Element constitutes one of the nine essential components mandated by the state for inclusion in the general plan. According to state law, a city’s Safety Element must focus on safeguarding its residents from unreasonable risks related to disasters, which encompass earthquakes, floods, fires, and landslides. Additionally, the Safety Element may address other pertinent safety concerns at the local level, such as crime, pandemic response protocols, emergency response protocols, evacuation, and handling hazardous materials spills.

Category: Safety Element
Which government code dictates Safety Element update?

The Safety Element must align with Government Code Section 65302(g), which aims to safeguard the community against unreasonable risks stemming from various factors, including:

  • Geologic hazards
  • Seismically induced surface rupture, ground shaking, ground failure
  • Tsunami, seiche, and dam failure
  • Slope instability leading to mudslides and landslides.
  • Subsidence
  • Liquefaction
  • Flooding
  • Wildfires
  • Climate change
Category: Safety Element
What does a Safety Element accomplish?

The goal of the Safety Element is to reduce the potential short and long-term risk of death, injuries, property damage, and economic and social dislocation resulting from natural hazards such as fires, floods, droughts, earthquakes, landslides, climate change, and other hazards. The Safety Element serves as a crucial tool for identifying these risks and establishing provisions to address them, thereby informing local decisions related to zoning, subdivisions, and entitlement permits. Additionally, it may address other pertinent safety concerns at the local level, including evacuation. emergency response protocols, hazardous materials management, and crime reduction. Given the escalating impacts of climate change in California, local governments are now mandated to incorporate a climate change vulnerability assessment and implement measures to mitigate vulnerabilities within the Safety Element update.

Category: Safety Element
Why is the Safety Element being updated?

The city should regularly update its Safety Element within the General Plan for several important reasons:

Legal and Regulatory Compliance: State legislation requires that the Safety Element be reviewed and updated as necessary alongside the Housing Element. The City’s Housing Element was last adopted in January 2023. State legislation also now requires additional information related to flooding, wildfire, and climate resilience, evacuation route identification and assessment, and linking the Safety Element to the City’s Hazard Mitigation Plan which is a short-term action-oriented document. Government Code Section 65302(g) describes required background information and provides policy and program guidance for Safety Element updates.  Recent legislative updates necessitating the City’s Safety Element revision include:

  • SB 379 (2017): Requires the City to incorporate climate adaptation and resilience strategies by conducting a vulnerability assessment or utilizing a Local Hazard Mitigation Plan that addresses climate-related risks and vulnerabilities.
  • SB 1035 (2018): Synchronizes the Safety Element update with the subsequent Housing Element update, ensuring compliance with evolving requirements and the integration of updated information over the eight-year cycle.
  • AB747 (2019): Analysis of evacuation routes to include the safety, viability, and capacity under a range of emergency scenarios.  
  • SB 99 (2020): Mandates the identification of residential developments in hazard areas lacking at least two emergency evacuation routes within the Safety Element.

Changing Hazards and Risks: Over time, hazards and risks faced by a city can evolve due to natural processes (e.g., climate change, seismic activity) or human factors (e.g., urban development, population growth). Regular updates allow the city to assess new risks and incorporate effective mitigation strategies.

Technological Advances and Best Practices: Advances in technology and safety practices provide better ways to protect residents and property. Updating the Safety Element ensures that the city incorporates the latest knowledge and best practices.

Community Engagement and Equity: Updating the Safety Element involves community input and engagement. It allows residents to voice concerns, share local knowledge, and participate in shaping safety policies. An updated Safety Element can address equity by considering vulnerable populations and their specific needs.

Emergency Preparedness and Response: An updated Safety Element provides a framework for emergency preparedness and response. It outlines evacuation routes, emergency shelters, communication plans, and coordination among agencies.

Category: Safety Element
What are the City Plans that support the Safety Element?

The City has several long-range citywide plans and programs that are related to and complement the Safety Element. These include the following:

These plans contribute significantly to the content required for the Safety Element to comply with State law. Relevant material from these plans will be consolidated and summarized for inclusion in the updated Safety Element.

Additionally, the City’s Safety Element Goals and policies are currently distributed across various General Plan elements, including the Infrastructure & Waste Disposal Element, Natural Environment & Hazards Element, and Open Space Conservation & Community Services Element. The updated Safety Element will extract relevant content from these elements and formulate a new Safety Element in accordance with State legislation.

Category: Safety Element
How is climate change and resilience being considered in the Safety Element update?

The Safety Element update aligns with new state laws that specifically require safety elements to address climate change resilience. Consistent with state guidance, a vulnerability assessment will be referenced from the ongoing Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan (currently under way) to determine public safety risks from climate change, including flooding, wildfire, and other hazards. This assessment will help identify areas of vulnerability and guide the formulation of goals, policies, objectives, and implementation measures that enhance climate change resilience within the Safety Element update.

Furthermore, the Safety Element will incorporate the city’s Climate Action Adaptation Plan (CAAP) by reference. The CAAP specifically focuses on climate change adaptation and enhancing resilience. It reflects the substantial planning efforts already undertaken by the City, aligning with the State’s recent requirements related to climate change within general plans.

Category: Safety Element
  • Printer-friendly version