How Fire-Resilient Design Can Unlock Affordable Housing in California

In the new Whitepaper, Fire Resilient Development: How Science-Informed Community Planning Can Contribute to Affordable Housing in California, wildfire experts Scott Farley and Dave Winnacker (Fire Chief, Ret.) challenge the assumption that all development in the wildland-urban interface (WUI) increases fire risk. They argue that, with the right design, new master-planned communities can actually reduce regional wildfire exposure while helping meet urgent housing needs.

This in-depth whitepaper explores how science-guided planning (SGP) and modern fire behavior modeling can be used to:

• Build communities that resist wildfire ignition and spread
• Disrupt fire pathways to protect both new and existing neighborhoods
• Slow fire progression to give firefighters more time to respond
• Ensure long-term risk reduction through durable community mechanisms
• Improve insurability and affordability in high-risk regions

The paper also includes a detailed Science-Guided Design Framework, a practical checklist that developers and planners can use to evaluate site-specific fire risks and incorporate layered, community-wide mitigation strategies.

If you're a developer, policymaker, planner, or housing advocate looking to align wildfire resilience with California’s housing goals, this paper is a must-read.