What is your Fire Response Missing? Listening.
“We have lost gas. We have lost electricity.
But we have not lost power.”–Donny Kincey, Altadena Leader who Lost His Home to the Eaton Fires
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the crowd of ideas for rebuilding in Los Angeles, you’re not alone. Fire-resistant ADUs, new housing policies, billionaire-backed foundations—everyone has a plan. But one voice is consistently missing: residents.
For Altadena’s working-class Black and Latino communities, this moment carries the highest risk of displacement and cultural erasure. Families are still searching for housing, food, and schools for their children—all while daring to dream of an Altadena that rises stronger, more inclusive, and more resilient.
In moments of crisis, outside experts and organizations often rush in with solutions. Some offer crucial support, while others—intentionally or not—undermine local leadership. How can we tell the difference? Here are the questions we’re asking:
To Evaluate Outside Efforts:
Who initiated the idea for this?
Who benefits? (Follow the money.)
Were residents involved in the decision-making process?
To Get Community Feedback on Your Proposal
What would be the most helpful for you right now? In the next 6 months? In the next 3 years?
Do you think what we want to do is needed? Why or why not?
Is anyone else already addressing this issue? Could you connect me with them?
Has their work helped? Why or Why not?
If we move forward, how would you support us or collaborate?
In the next few months, sorting through, consolidating, and maintaining resources— in a way that is accessible to residents— will be the main priority for emerging coalitions. To assist these efforts, Architecture + Advocacy will use our expertise in community-led design to empower Altadena residents to shape the future they want to see by:
Partnering with community-based organizations to make rebuilding resources accessible.
Preserving oral histories to ensure community voices are not lost in redevelopment.
Hosting community visioning sessions so residents, not outside forces, define what’s next.
The road to rebuilding is long, but one thing is clear: the future of Altadena should be shaped by the people who call it home.