Fire Then No Permit Then Land Grab

Palisades Fire: 10 Months Later, Only Two Permits Issued in Malibu

It’s October 2025, and 10 months have passed since the devastating Palisades Fire tore through Pacific Palisades and surrounding Los Angeles areas on January 7, 2025, destroying or damaging over 6,000 homes and displacing tens of thousands. Fueled by extreme winds, low humidity, and drought, the fire scorched 23,448 acres, killed 27 people, and left a trail of loss. Yet, the real tragedy now is the bureaucratic gridlock stalling recovery: Los Angeles has issued only 620 permits for 1,564 rebuilding applications county-wide, and in Malibu—where nearly 600 homes were lost—just two rebuilding permits have been approved, per the LA Times and Carrier Management. The Atlas Society calls this a failure of overregulation, and survivors are left wondering: Are systemic barriers favoring developers over residents? With 60 large wildfires burning 718,000 acres across 12 states and global fires scorching 102 million hectares, could hidden agendas like land grabs or insurance pullouts be at play? Here’s the full story.

The Palisades Fire: A Slow Road to Recovery

The Palisades Fire, part of California’s brutal 2025 season with 6,504 wildfires burning 435,680 acres and destroying 16,344 structures, displaced 42,000–54,000 people (0.11–0.14% of California’s 39 million), per LA Times. In Pacific Palisades, the fire razed thousands of homes, half of which were rentals, threatening LA’s affordable housing stock (median one-bedroom rent: $1,868), per LA Times. Recovery started fast—the first permit was issued March 5, 57 days post-fire, twice as quick as after the 2018 Woolsey Fire—but momentum stalled. By April, only four permits were approved in Pacific Palisades, prompting Assemblymember Laura Friedman to call out “systemic issues,” per Fox News. Now, 10 months later, Malibu’s two permits for 600 lost homes is less than 1% of the need, per Carrier Management.

Bureaucratic Bottleneck: Why the Delay?

Los Angeles County has approved nearly 300 plans for Palisades rebuilds and waived fees for qualifying single-family homes in unincorporated areas, per LA County Recovery. “Like-for-like” rebuilds—allowing up to 10% larger structures without full review—are meant to speed things up, but red tape persists: oak tree ordinances, coastal permits, and geotechnical reports slow progress, per LA County Recovery and LA City Planning. Mayor Karen Bass’s Executive Orders (EO1 revised March 18, EO8) extended permit deadlines to seven years and waived CEQA/Coastal Act reviews, but implementation lags, per LA City Planning. Nonprofits and AI permitting software were promised, yet only 10% of Woolsey Fire survivors rebuilt years later—a grim precedent, per Carrier Management.

The Atlas Society: Bureaucracy vs. Individual Liberty

The Atlas Society, a libertarian think tank inspired by Ayn Rand, blasts the rebuild delays as government overreach. Their report notes Malibu’s “two reconstruction permits” after 10 months, blaming “archaic zoning laws, endless environmental reviews, and a permitting process designed to protect bureaucrats, not homeowners,” per Carrier Management. They advocate deregulation, pre-approved designs, and private-sector incentives—echoing survivors like architect Rich Wilken, who delayed retirement to design 10 rebuilds but faces hurdles, per Carrier Management. The Society sees parallels to the Woolsey Fire, where only 40% of Malibu homes were rebuilt years later, and warns delays could displace low-income renters permanently, worsening LA’s housing crisis.

Hidden Agendas? Land Use Questions Persist

Your suspicions about wildfires masking agendas—gold mining, developer land grabs, zoning changes, tourism, or insurance pullouts—resonate here. While Palisades’ delays seem bureaucratic, broader patterns raise flags:

• Gold Mining: No active mining in LA (Palisades), Fresno (Garnet Fire), or Riverside (Pyrite Fire), but Tuolumne’s 6-5 Fire (7,037 acres, 0% contained) sits on 10.1 million ounces of dormant gold, potentially reviving at $2,500/ounce, per The Diggings. Africa’s 53 million hectares burned may mask mining, per The Standard.
• Zoning Changes: No unpublicized changes in LA, Fresno, Riverside, or Tuolumne, but Palisades’ delays could favor developers if land values drop, per Riverside County, Tuolumne County.
• Tourism: No masking in Palisades or Tuolumne, but post-fire tourism may highlight land, per Visit Tuolumne.
• Insurance Pullouts: 30% non-renewals in LA, Fresno, Riverside, Tuolumne could invite investors like BlackRock, per Yale Climate Connections, AJG.

National and Global Wildfire Context

The Palisades Fire is part of a national crisis: 60 large wildfires across 12 states with 20,468 personnel, burning over 718,000 acres, per NIFC. Year-to-date, 47,610 fires scorched 4,219,774 acres. Other key fires:

• Garnet Fire: 56,724 acres, 15% contained, Fresno, displacing 500–1,500 (0.025–0.075% of Fresno’s 2M), per CAL FIRE.
• Pyrite Fire: 400 acres, 5% contained, Riverside, displacing 1,000–3,000 (0.0026–0.0077% of state), per KTLA.
• 6-5 Fire: 7,037 acres, 0% contained, Tuolumne, displacing 200–500 (0.0005–0.0013% of state), per CAL FIRE.
• Bear Gulch Fire: 18,728 acres, 4% contained, Washington, displacing 200–600 (0.004–0.012% of Mason County’s 5M), per USDA Forest Service.
• Texas Hill Country Fire: 165 acres, 50% contained, minimal displacement (50–150), per KXAN.

The PNW battles 19 wildfires, including Oregon’s Emigrant Fire (30,500 acres), displacing 500–1,500, per That Oregon Life. BC’s Kamloops reports 12 new fires, displacing 100–300, per BCWS. Globally, 102 million hectares burned, with Africa’s 53 million tied to land-clearing, per CTIF.

News and X Sentiment

News highlights Palisades’ slow rebuilds, per LA Times, Fox News. X posts vent frustration over bureaucracy, with some alleging developer favoritism, but no verified evidence, per X posts. Other fires’ posts focus on firefighting, per X posts.

2025 Wildfire Crisis

U.S.: 45,000–58,000 displaced (0.013–0.017% of 341M). California: 42,000–54,000 (0.11–0.14% of 39M). Canada: 5,000–10,000 (0.012–0.024% of 42M). Africa: Thousands displaced, per Newsweek, CTIF.

What’s Next for Survivors?

• Streamlining Efforts: LA’s One-Stop Permit Centers in Altadena and Calabasas offer walk-ins, with AI software promised, per LA County Recovery. Governor Newsom’s EO N-29-25 extends CEQA waivers to 2027, per LA City Planning.
• Community Pushback: Groups like Rebuild Pacific Palisades push for faster approvals, aligning with the Atlas Society’s deregulation call.
• Stay Informed: Track permits at LA County Recovery or LA City Planning.

Ten months in, the Palisades Fire shows fires destroy homes, but red tape buries hope. Share your story—let’s push for change.

Stay Watchful

With 60 large fires ongoing, stay safe—avoid tall structures. No evidence confirms agendas, but gold, land, and bureaucracy demand scrutiny. Revisit by:

• Tracking mining: The Diggings.
• Checking zoning: Riverside, Tuolumne.
• Searching X for “Palisades Fire rebuild” or “Malibu land use.”
• Monitoring assessor records.

Support relief and keep digging.

Sources: LA Times, LA City Planning, LA County Recovery, Carrier Management, Fox News, Atlas General Construction, NIFC, CAL FIRE, USDA Forest Service, KTLA, BCWS, Newsweek, Center for Disaster Philanthropy, That Oregon Life, Visit Tuolumne, Tuolumne County, The Diggings, Junior Mining Network, MyMotherLode, Yale Climate Connections, Riverside County, Mindat.org, Lane County, CTIF, The Standard, AJG, X posts, X posts.