Council hears update, plan on Marshall fire recovery
The Louisville City Council heard updates about Marshall fire recovery, going over recovery efforts and mitigation efforts the city and community are taking.
According to the Louisville website as of April 22, of the 550 homes and businesses lost in the fire, 203 units are under construction, 202 have received certificates of occupancy and 19 rebuild permits are being reviewed.
At the April 16 council meeting, Recovery and Resilience Manager Kiana Freeman said her division has been working on a disaster management program with the goal of leading the Marshall fire recovery while implementing resilience, helping the community builds back stronger.
The Marshall fire swept through Boulder County, Superior and Louisville on Dec. 30, 2021.
“Part of the recovery efforts that the recovery and resilience division is doing is … supporting not just in the physical rebuild, but all of the efforts going on,” Freeman said.
Freeman said the city will partner with Superior for the Disaster Preparedness Education Series, which the city also hosted last summer. The series focused on a different topic each month to educate the community on preparedness and increase resilience.
On May 23, Boulder County will host a webinar to go over updates regarding the Community Wildfire Protection Plan, which identifies and prioritizes ways to reduce wildfire risks. The plan was last updated in 2011, and according to the Boulder County website the new plan will be completed this year. More information is available at louisvilleco.gov/living-in-louisville/residents/resilient-louisville.
The recovery and resilience division also works to connect residents with Mental Health Partners and Jewish Family Services for any support needed. Freeman said the city will continue to evaluate any other mental health resources the community may need.
The city has received 385 City Use Tax Credit requests, available to property owners whose property was destroyed or sustained significant damage after the Marshall fire. The city has issued $5,539,120 in credits. The average cost of construction for residents rebuilding is $900,771.
In December 2023, the council passed an ordinance to allow resident’s whose homes were damaged by sustained smoke, heat, water, ash or other damage due to the fire to exempt construction materials from the city’s use tax and allow those residents to opt out of the 2021 building codes when rebuilding. Before, only homes that were significantly damaged or destroyed in the fire were exempt.
Director of Finance Ryder Bailey said fire-related expenses have cost the city $29.8 million, but the city expects to recover approximately 75% of those costs, the majority of which will come from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The remaining costs not externally covered, approximately $8.1 million, comes from unrecoverable losses like business income loss or disaster-related expenses not covered by FEMA.
Freeman said the public works department is continuing to monitor streets and sidewalks as construction progresses. The parks and open space department have completed repairing all amenities damaged in the fire and are continuing to work on replacing the landscape on damaged areas.
The Louisville Fire Protection District is also working with local fire departments and districts and the county to implement new response protocols for wildfires.
The city is also taking precautions to minimize possible fuel for fire by managing open space areas with mowing, cattle grazing and removal of woody fuels.