The Brief

For more than two months, the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers has been leading efforts to clear properties damaged in the Eaton and Palisades fires to prepare them for rebuilding.

The operation includes scraping the top six inches of soil and ash, cutting down damaged trees, removing concrete walls and foundations compromised by heat and pulling gnarled melted metal for recycling.

Crews work on removing debris from a burned property in Altadena on April 7.

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Brian Feinzimer

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LAist

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The Army Corps estimates that across nearly 14,000 parcels, as much as 4.5 million tons of material will be removed by the time operations wrap up (hopefully) in the fall. This is the largest municipal wildfire cleanup operation in recent history. For comparison, the deadly 2023 fires in Hawaii generated roughly 400,000 tons of debris.

The Army Corps is using 18 facilities. The Simi Valley, Calabasas and El Sobrante landfills are receiving fire debris and soil, while material containing asbestos goes to the Azusa landfill. If you're curious about where material is headed and how it gets there, you can view a full list of locations and hauling routes from the Eaton and Palisades burn areas.

A worker secures a tarp over a truck that is hauling debris from the Altadena burn area.

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Brian Feinzimer

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LAist

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Ash, soil and debris too hazardous to be recycled — an estimated 80% of the material — is packed up in trucks, wrapped in 10 millimeter plastic and sent to nearby landfills where it’s dumped, spread and covered with dirt each day.

Recyclable concrete, metal and trees, on the other hand, are sent to separation sites in Temescal Canyon and the Altadena Golf Course.

Downed trees and concrete are taken to the Altadena Golf Course for processing.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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LAist visited the golf course to get a better understanding of the massive and ongoing cleanup operation.

How recyclable material is processed

Trucks enter the facility, pull onto a scale and then dump material in the appropriate piles.

Truckloads of tree chunks from around Altadena are brought to the golf course for processing into wood chips.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Trucks are weighed before dropping off their material.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Metal gets separated out and sent to recyclers in Irwindale and El Monte. The material and the dirt the trucks are driving on is wetted to keep dust down.

Metal is piled and wetted down and then sent to be recycled.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Trees are dropped into a 15-foot-tall pile that gets shredded and turned into mulch for yards throughout the region.

Trees that were too damaged by fire and couldn't be left standing on properties are cut down, taken to the golf course and ground into mulch.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Concrete chunks are ground up into smaller bits to make for more efficient transport to a recycling facility in Sun Valley. Ultimately, the material may be used for building roads or other applications.

Water is sprayed on concrete as it's being processed to reduce dust.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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“The whole point of this debris removal operation is to get it off the properties into a consolidated state,” said Cory Koger, debris subject matter expert with the Army Corps. He said that instead of 45 minutes one way, each truck's trip is shortened to eight minutes. And that by processing the material into smaller bits at the separation sites, it could cut the number of truckloads from 150,000 to 75,000 over the course of cleanup operations.

Residents are concerned

Residents who live near the golf course are angry that cleanup operations are so close.

"This is a safety issue. Not a NIMBY issue. Because this would not be safe in any neighborhood," said George Gund, who lives a block away. "It just seems common sense. Inherently there are some risks associated with being this close to a toxic waste facility."

Grinding concrete can release large amount of silica dust, which can float through the air before settling. While the material that is ground is reportedly washed before it’s taken to Altadena Golf Course, residents including Gund are concerned that that process isn't enough to stop other hazardous material, including heavy metals and asbestos, from flying through the air and landing on their properties.

The L.A. County Department of Public Health is still warning that those within 250 yards of fire debris, ash and soot may be exposed to asbestos, particulate matter, heavy metals and hazardous chemicals, potentially leading to both short and long term health effects.

The Board of Supervisors this week approved the use of funds to test for lead on properties not immediately impacted by the Eaton Fire, particularly those downwind, after lead was found in soil samples a mile from the burn area.

"If it's safe, show me the data that says it's safe," said Gund.

Seven air quality monitors around the golf course check for PM 2.5 and PM 10 particulate pollution.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Koger acknowledged the concerns.

" We understand that there's people that still live in this neighborhood. We don't want to have an impact to them as well,” Koger said.  “ I think we just need to ask the surrounding community to be patient with us. We're doing it as quickly, but as safely as we can."

Dust mitigation measures are in place at the golf course. Material is constantly being wetted, as are the roads that the trucks drive on. Air quality monitors, which you can view live online, have been placed around the golf course. They test for all particulate matter 10 micrometers in size and less (PM 2.5 and PM 10) and not specifically for lead or other harmful materials.

When the levels — which are set to half of the national ambient air quality standards — are exceeded, alarms go off.

The morning LAist visited, the alarms were triggered by crews chipping wood, according to Trevor Durning, an air monitoring technician for Tetra Tech, which is responsible for the monitoring equipment.

Depending on why alarms are triggered, crews may increase the amount of water on a pile or stop operations until the dust settles.

Authorities expect to process more than 4.5 million tons of material from the Eaton and Palisades fires.

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Jacob Margolis

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LAist

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Useful links

• Up-to-date status of removal and cleanup posted by the Army Corp of Engineers.
• Air quality monitors at Altadena Golf Course.
• Air quality monitoring for the burned areas by the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
• Daily dust monitoring report for the Pacific Palisades separation site.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

Since 1977, Richard Santillan has been to every Opening Day game at Dodger Stadium. 

“The tradition goes from my father, to me, to my children and grandchildren. Some of my best memories are with my father and children here at Dodger Stadium,” Santillan told The LA Local, smiling under the shade of palm trees near the entrance to the ballpark Wednesday morning. He was there to protest the team less than 24 hours before Opening Day.

Santillan, like countless other loyal Dodgers fans, is grappling with his fan identity over the team’s decision to accept an invitation to the White House and owner Mark Walter’s ties to ICE detention facilities.

More than 30 people joined Santillan on Wednesday morning for a press conference held near 1000 Vin Scully Drive to convey a message directly to the team. 

“We are demanding the Dodgers stop participating in funding of inhumane treatment of families and do not go to the White House to celebrate with the criminal in chief,” Evelyn Escatiola told the crowd. “Together, we have the power to make a change.”

Escatiola, a former dean of East Los Angeles College and longtime community organizer, urged fans to flex their economic power by “letting the Dodgers know that we do not support repression.”

Jorge “Coqui” Rodriguez, a lifelong Dodgers fan, spoke to the crowd and called on Dodgers ownership to divest from immigration detention centers owned and operated by GEO Group and CoreCivic.

Jorge Coqui H Rodriguez speaks at a press conference outside Dodger Stadium on March 25, 2026, to demand the Dodgers not to visit the White House following their 2025 World Series win.

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J.W. Hendricks

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The LA Local

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In a phone interview a day before the protest, Rodriguez told The LA Local he did not want the Dodgers using his “cheve” or beer money to fund detention centers. 

“They can’t take our parking money, our cacahuate money, our cheve money, our Dodger Dog money and invest those funds into corporations that are imprisoning people. It’s wrong,” Rodriguez said. 

Rodriguez considers the Dodgers one of the most racially diverse teams and said the players need to support fans at a time when heightened immigration enforcement has become more common across L.A.

The team’s 2025’s visit to the White House drew ire from the largely Latino fan base, citing the Trump administration’s ongoing attacks on immigrants. 

In June, the team came under further scrutiny when rumors swirled online that federal immigration agents were using the stadium’s parking, which immigration authorities later denied in statements posted on social media accounts.

The team again came under fire after not releasing a statement on the impacts of ICE raids on its mostly Latino fan base at the height of immigration enforcement last summer. The team later agreed to invest $1 million to support families affected by immigration enforcement.

When he learned the Dodgers were pledging only $1 million to families in need, Rodriguez called the amount a  “slap in the face.” 

“These guys just bought the Lakers for billions of dollars and they give a million dollars to fight for legal services? That’s a joke,” Rodriguez said. “They need to have a moral backbone and not be investing in those companies.”

According to reporting from the Los Angeles Times, former Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershawsaid last week that he is looking forward to the trip.

“I went when President [Joe] Biden was in office. I’m going to go when President [Donald] Trump is in office,” Kershaw said. “To me, it’s just about getting to go to the White House. You don’t get that opportunity every day, so I’m excited to go.”

The Dodgers have yet to announce when their planned visit will take place. 

Santillan sometimes laments his decision to give up his season tickets in protest of the team. His connection to the stadium and the memories he has made there with family and friends will last a lifetime, he said. On Thursday, he will uphold his tradition and be there for the first pitch of the season, but with a heavy heart.

“It’s a family tradition, but the Dodgers have a lot of work to do,” he said.

A local favorite mom-and-pop bookshop in Eagle Rock is facing displacement due to a steep rent hike. The owners say theirs is just one of several small businesses along Eagle Rock Boulevard struggling to keep up with lease increases.

Over the past 19 years, many in the neighborhood have come to love READ Books for its eclectic collection of used titles and shop dog Florence.

Co-owner Jeremy Kaplan said it’s been a delight to grow with the community over the years.

“Like seeing kids come back in, who were in grade school and now they’re in college,” Kaplan said.

But the building where Kaplan and wife Debbie rent was recently sold, and the rent increased by more than 130% to $2,805 a month, Kaplan said. He told LAist it was an increase his small business simply could not absorb.

Kaplan said he originally was given 30 days notice of the rent increase. After some research, assistance from Councilmember Ysabel Jurado’s office and some pro-bono legal help, Kaplan said he pushed back and got the 90-day notice he’s afforded by state law.

California Senate Bill 1103 requires landlords to give businesses with five or less employees 90 days’ notice for rent increases exceeding 10%, among other protections.

Systems Real Estate, the property management company, did not immediately respond to LAist’s request for comment.

What can small businesses do? 

Nadia Segura, directing attorney of the Small Business Program at pro bono legal aid non-profit Bet Tzedek said California law does not currently allow for rent control for commercial tenancies.

Outside of the protections under SB 1103, Segura said small businesses like READ Books don’t have much other recourse. And even then, commercial landlords are not required to inform their tenants of their protections under the law.

“There’s still a lot of people that don’t know about SB 1103. And then it’s very sad that they tell them they have these rent increases and within a month they have to leave,” Segura said.

She said her group is seeing steep rent hikes like this for commercial tenants across the city.

“We are seeing this even more with the World Cup coming up, the Olympics coming up. And I will say it was very sad to see that also after the wildfires,” Segura said.

Part of Bet Tzedek’s ongoing work is to advocate for small businesses, working with landlords who are increasing rents to see if they are willing to give business owners longer leases that lock in rents.

What’s next 

After READ Books posted about their situation on social media, commenters chimed in to express their outrage and love for the little shop.

While he looks for a new spot, Kaplan says he’s forming a coalition of local businesses and activist groups to see what can be done to help other small businesses facing similar displacement. He wants to address the displacement issue for businesses like his, which have made Eagle Rock the distinctive neighborhood that it is today.

Owl Talk, a longtime Eagle Rock staple selling clothing and accessories in a unit in the same building as READ Books, is facing a “more than double” rent increase, according to a post on their Instagram account.

Kaplan said he’s been in touch with the office of state Assemblywoman Jessica Caloza and wants to explore the possibility of introducing legislation to set up protections for small businesses like his, including rent-control measures or a vacancy tax for landlords. Kaplan said he also reached out to the office of state Sen. Maria Durazo.

By his count, Kaplan said there are about a dozen businesses within surrounding blocks that are at risk of closing their doors or have shuttered due to rent increases or other struggles.

When READ Books was founded during the Great Recession, Kaplan said he knew it was a longshot to open a bookstore at the same time so many were struggling to stay in business.

“It was kind of interesting to be doing something that neighborhoods needed. That was important to me growing up, that was important to my children, that was important to my wife growing up,” Kaplan said.

“And then somebody comes in and says, ‘We’re gonna over double your rent.”

Topline:

Frozen budget: Most of the city’s Bureau of Street Lighting budget comes from an assessment that people who own property illuminated by lights pay on their county property tax bill. The amount people pay depends on the kind of property they own and how much they benefit from lighting. A typical single-family home currently pays $53 annually, and in total, the assessments bring in about $45 million annually for the city to repair and maintain streetlights. Changing the amount the Bureau of Street Lighting gets from the assessment requires a vote among property owners who benefit from the lights.

Ballots: L.A. City Council’s vote gives city staff the green light to prepare and send out those ballots. Miguel Sangalang, who oversees the bureau, said at a committee meeting earlier this month that he expects to send out ballots by April 17. Notices about the ballots will be sent out prior to the ballots themselves.

Near unanimous vote: L.A. City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez was the only “No” vote Tuesday, saying she wanted to see a more current strategic plan for the bureau. Sangalang said the bureau developed a plan in 2022 that lays out how money will be spent. Councilmember Imelda Padilla was absent for the vote.

Vote count: Votes will be weighted according to the assessment amount. Basically, the more you’re asked to pay yearly to maintain streetlights, the more your vote will count. Ballots received before June 2 will be tabulated by the L.A. City Clerk.

How much more money: According to a report, the amount needed in assessments from property owners to meet the repair and maintenance needs of the city’s streetlighting in the next fiscal year is nearly $112 million.

Use of the money: Sangalang said at a March 11 committee meeting that the extra funds would be used to double the number of staff to handle repairs and procure solar streetlights, which don’t face the threat of copper wire theft. That would all potentially reduce the time it takes to repair simple fixes down to a week. Currently, city residents wait for months to see broken streetlights repaired. The assessment would come with a three-year auditing mechanism.