100 days since California wildfires Bass touts progress, but contractors disagree

LOS ANGELES - Now 100 days since the deadly Los Angeles wildfires, Mayor Karen Bass Thursday said there’s no plan for budget cuts to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

"We need far more resources to the fire department," said Bass.

Los Angeles wildfire recovery

What we know:

The mayor was joined by several other local and state leaders Thursday for a press conference in Pacific Palisades, marking 100 days since the Palisades Fire.

"LA’s disaster recovery is on track to be the fastest in modern California history," said Bass.

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The other side:

Following the press conference, FOX 11 met with contractor Luke Melchir, who’s working on properties destroyed by the fire.

"She’s all smiles, but things are going slowly," said Melchir on the Mayor. "I know we’ve brought things to her attention."

On Thursday, crews could be seen continuing to clear charred debris from some lots, while others appeared untouched since the blaze. As of last Thursday, according to the LA Department of Building and Safety, of the nearly 7,000 buildings destroyed in the Palisades Fire, 12 permits have been issued to rebuild.

"The main issue, I would say, is just closing out inspections," said Melchir. "Waiting on the city to get out, close out our fire debris permits. Although they published guideline, each inspector has different criteria they’re following."

California insurance costs

Dig deeper:

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara was also in the Palisades on Thursday. FOX 11 asked him if residents impacted by the fires had come to him with any particular complaints.

"No," said Lara. "The issue we hear over again, it goes in stages, immediately after fires we want to focus on getting claims paid immediately."

According to Lara, California is having an insurance crisis. This, as rates increase for homeowners statewide essentially billed for natural disasters.

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"This is why we need focus on mitigation," said Lara. "Bring the price down. Bring competition back into the area and bring insurance rates down eventually."

Mayor Bass told reporters she’s looking into ways to address traffic issues, caused by security checkpoints to get into Pacific Palisades. In addition, she could have an announcement next week involving the possibility of waiving permits/fees associated with rebuilding.

"We could always do things better," said Bass. "The one issue we’re grappling with now, is waving fees. We’re working on that now to see what that could mean for the budget."