They want to be 鈥楢ltadena strong.鈥� Finances are making it tough.
| Altadena, Calif.
Every stuffed animal has a place in 9-year-old Cecily Wallinger鈥檚 new bedroom. There are the ones she carried with her when her family evacuated before a wildfire tore through their neighborhood of Altadena, on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Others have been donated since. Foxes outnumber the plush cats and dogs and unicorns, and all are arranged in a neat semicircle. Some have hiding spaces, too.
鈥淚f you look at my bed, you can tell what my favorite animal is,鈥� she says, giving a tour of what she describes as her 鈥渇un鈥� but 鈥渢emporary鈥� home.
Her parents, Bridgette Campbell and Christopher Wallinger, moved with her to this Pasadena apartment after they realized their Spanish-style house, nestled on the corner of Olive Avenue and Harriet Street, was among the more than 9,400 structures destroyed in January鈥檚 Eaton blaze. They planned to stay here as they rebuilt in their beloved neighborhood.
Why We Wrote This
Nine months after the Eaton Fire, an Altadena family navigates the red tape that is hampering recovery for those who lost it all in the blaze. How much of their daughter鈥檚 childhood will be spent in limbo? The third in our series from Olive Avenue showing the long road after a natural disaster. Read Parts 1 and 2.
But these days, Ms. Campbell and Mr. Wallinger wonder what 鈥渢emporary鈥� really means.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really in such a holding pattern,鈥� Ms. Campbell says.
They are among the thousands of fire survivors thrust into a waiting game complicated by institutional hang-ups.
Some are waiting for insurance payouts that seem frustratingly slow to arrive. Others are waiting for design and permit approvals to begin rebuilding. Others are just waiting, not entirely sure what to do nine months after the Eaton Fire scorched their neighborhood.
Since January, the Monitor has been following the residents of one block of Altadena鈥檚 Olive Avenue, observing through their eyes a long recovery process usually overshadowed by a relentless news cycle. What does it mean to survive 鈥� and even thrive 鈥� after a disaster? After the initial shock and heartbreak, after the first phases of cleanup, how does a community move forward in the face of institutional roadblocks?
Cecily recently started another school year. Her parents wonder how old she will be by the time their new house is rebuilt in Altadena. Will she even want to go back after experiencing an urban lifestyle near downtown Pasadena? Will she remember the old neighborhood? And what will they tell her if, even after planning and saving and committing to rebuild, the finances of disaster recovery simply make that path impossible?
Do the numbers add up?
Ms. Campbell is a high school theater teacher. Mr. Wallinger is an actor. Their work is rooted in words, but lately, they have been mired in numbers.
It started with the couple learning they would receive roughly $525,000 from their insurer, USAA, to rebuild their house. That set in motion a series of budget decisions. Could they squeeze in a second bathroom? Yes. Could they afford the hardwood floors and Spanish tile roof that gave their original home its character? No.
Next came calculations related to the construction process. First, Los Angeles County must sign off on their design plans. Then they can submit building permits for the new house.
As of the end of September, permits for 257 single-family homes in the Eaton fire zone had been issued, according to a Los Angeles County . It鈥檚 averaging 75 business days for the county to issue permits for new residential units.
Given those constraints, the couple estimate it could be February or later before construction can begin on their new house. Their contractor, meanwhile, says it could take 12 to 18 months to complete the project because of inspections needed along the way. And therein lies a financial conundrum.
鈥淲e鈥檙e being told it could be two years until we鈥檙e able to move back into our house, and our [additional living expenses]鈥� 鈥� insurance coverage that pays for temporary relocation 鈥� 鈥渞uns out in a year,鈥� Mr. Wallinger said in September. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 know how we鈥檙e going to pay our mortgage and our rent.鈥�
The mortgage for their fire-razed home is $4,700 a month. Rent for their two-bedroom Pasadena apartment is $3,700. They are also still shelling out $100 a month for homeowners鈥� insurance on a house that no longer exists in a bid to maintain coverage going forward. Without mortgage forbearance or some other kind of financial relief, the couple say it will be too much to bear.
When their apartment lease ends in February, it will be decision time. Downsize to a one-bedroom apartment? Temporarily move in with relatives? Live in an RV on their property?
Six in 10 people displaced from the Eaton and Palisades fires say they will have no remaining temporary housing coverage within a year, according to a June survey commissioned by the nonprofit Department of Angels, which formed in the aftermath of the wildfires to assist with recovery. That survey also found that the majority of insured survivors of the Eaton and Palisades fires say delays, denials, and underpayments are hampering their ability to recover.
At the end of August, members of a group dubbed the Eaton Fire Survivor Network gathered with state lawmakers to raise awareness about the insurance-related speed bumps hampering recovery.
鈥淓very delayed payment, every denial of what is owed in someone鈥檚 policy, is not just paperwork to us 鈥� it鈥檚 a family forced to wait in limbo,鈥� said Victoria Knapp, chair of the Altadena Town Council, during the press conference. Her family is among those who lost their home in the blaze. 鈥淚t鈥檚 children who cannot go home. It鈥檚 elders living in temporary housing month after month with no end in sight and no promise of continued payment.鈥�
State Farm officials said, as of mid-September, the insurer has paid more than $4.6 billion and received over 13,000 claims related to the January wildfires in the LA area.
鈥淲hen we do receive a complaint, we take it seriously and our team works to resolve the issue with our customer,鈥� the company said in a statement. 鈥淲e would ask any customer with a question or concern to reach out to us directly so we can address it.鈥�
鈥淔or Sale鈥� signs sprout
Ms. Campbell and Mr. Wallinger consider themselves fortunate to know their expected insurance settlement. But peering into the future is a cautionary exercise.
The 鈥淔or Sale鈥� signs dotting parcels throughout Altadena foretell at least a degree of change. Two lots being sold border Ms. Campbell and Mr. Wallinger鈥檚 property. As they envision their rebuilt home, they are bracing themselves for the surrounding environment to look and feel different, too.
鈥淲hen we were out there measuring the land before we said yes to the [design] plans, we were like, 鈥極K, imagine a McMansion here, a triplex there,鈥� Ms. Campbell says.
It won鈥檛 be the same neighborhood where Cecily rode her bike or played on a swing set with friends. The blaze wiped out what her parents describe as a 1980s-esque childhood, where neighborhood friends were just a door knock away. She could be 11 years or older by the time they can move back 鈥� and that鈥檚 assuming their plans stay relatively on track.
In the meantime, a puppy named Ruby has helped their fourth-grade daughter cope. But nine months post-fire, Cecily still often falls asleep in her parents鈥� bed at night.
鈥淚 miss the trees,鈥� Cecily says of her former Altadena home. 鈥淚 miss all the 鈥︹�� Her voice trails off.
鈥淲hat do I miss about it?鈥� she says before pausing again. Then she sums it up in three words: 鈥淚 miss everything.鈥�
So do her parents. They have been clinging to an 鈥淎ltadena strong鈥� mentality, but doubt creeps in as they mull their financial horizon.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not even a thought of, 鈥業 would rather not go through this,鈥欌�� Mr. Wallinger says of rebuilding. 鈥淭here鈥檚 the possibility we will not be able to.鈥�
Back home, at last
Farther south on Olive Avenue, at least one family has returned.
Daniel Quiroz and Joann Flores were among the displaced when the Monitor met them in late May. But by midsummer, the couple moved back into their fire-damaged house with their toddler, Darla.
It鈥檚 the same house, except with new floors and furnishings after heavy smoke and ash blanketed the interior. The couple also converted a portion of their garage into living space for Mr. Quiroz鈥檚 mother and sister, whose house on a parallel street burned down.
They鈥檙e navigating a dual reality 鈥� settled back in their own home while interacting with family and friends facing the prospect of rebuilding. Mr. Quiroz has been contacting architects for his mother and measuring her property.
It鈥檚 a quieter Altadena right now. But Mr. Quiroz expects a brighter future.
鈥淭his neighborhood is going to boom,鈥� he says. 鈥淭en years.鈥�
They鈥檙e grateful to be among the lucky ones already back.
鈥淎 lot of people can鈥檛 say the same,鈥� Ms. Flores says. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e so glad to be home.鈥�
For those who remain displaced, there is joy in seeing small progress. Ms. Campbell and Mr. Wallinger visit their Altadena property every four to six weeks. On one such recent trip, Ms. Campbell points to a twiggy plant in jubilation. It鈥檚 steps away from the stump of what used to be a towering 70-foot pine tree.
Could it be a replacement breaking through the ground? Maybe.
Editor鈥檚 note: This article was updated on Oct. 16 to correct the name of聽Victoria Knapp,聽chair of the Altadena Town Council.
