Why wait for a judge!?

The city’s own EIR claims Plan Orinda will substantially impair both emergency response capabilities and emergency evacuation capacity, resulting in an increase in risk to lives and property. The city has formally acknowledged that Plan Orinda will increase risks in the event of a wildfire, but declared by fiat that those risks are acceptable. They are proceeding with Plan Orinda without any commitments to fund improvements. As reported in the Orinda News' July 2023 edition, City Manager David Biggs says the city will proceed with Plan Orinda unless the judge instructs otherwise.

So why must it take a judge telling them to prioritize the safety of the community? Why is the city satisfied with inadequate information regarding this critical issue?

Why have they not commissioned a true wildfire evacuation analysis and plan that assumes the dynamic aspects of wildfire behavior as recommended by the Fire Chief?

Why are they satisfied with an evacuation analysis that did not assume the thousands of new housing units included in Plan Orinda, both downtown and along the evacuation routes?

Most importantly, why isn’t the number one consideration of the city preserving the lives of its residents?

Since the city will listen to a judge, the lawsuit appears to be the right way to get the city to address the problem. So far OSEE has funded the lawsuit through generous donations from the community. But we need more funding to keep the lawsuit going.

Please donate what you can today. Go to the Donate page of this website for options.

Also, please reach out to the City Council members and voice your opinions. Let them know that you expect the city to provide adequate evacuation capacity and emergency response capabilities in the event of a wildfire.

Mayor Inga Miller imiller@cityoforinda.org;

Vice-Mayor Darlene Gee dgee@cityoforinda.org;

Councilmember Latika Malkani lmalkani@cityoforinda.org;

Councilmember Brandyn Iverson biverson@cityoforinda.org;

Councilmember Janet Riley jriley@cityoforinda.org;

Check back often to learn of upcoming City Council meetings about the lawsuit.