Councilmembers also adopt resolution confirming cost of vegetation, rubbish abatement

ATASCADERO — The recent Llano Fire and the planning for and mitigation against future similar emergencies dominated the agenda at the lastest Atascadero City Council meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 12.

The council heard a management report for Atascadero Fire Chief Casey Bryson on his department’s response to the Llano Fire, as well as that of the Atascadero Police Department and other agencies. After the presentation, Bryson and Police Chief Daniel Suttles took questions from council and the public.

It just so happened that the other main item, the one Public Hearing on the night, had to do with confirming the cost of vegetative/weed and rubbish abatement, which has been promoted by many communities as a preventative measure against vegetation fires.

In that item, AFD Battalion Chief Dave Van Son gave a breakdown of what the department and the city has been doing to ensure the trimming and removal of overgrown vegetation and trash around people’s homes (known as defensible space) to quell the advance of any fires that may advance upon a property. Also included in the report was the approximate amount of $106,673.58 that the city will receive from the 2025/2026 property tax rolls in weed abatement/refuse abatement assessments.

On April 8, Council adopted Resolution No. 2025-004, declaring vegetative growth and/or refuse a public nuisance, and authorizing the Fire Chief to proceed with the abatement process. On April 26, notices were mailed to property owners, informing them of the City’s abatement requirements.

Van Son said that 11,282 parcels were inspected, starting in March, and 6,382 notices to abate (110 more than last year) were sent out in April with a deadline of June 1 to comply. Following another inspection post-deadline, 81 properties were tagged for abatement, with 44 (21 more than in 2024) abated by contractors.

Mayor Charles Bourbeau said he had seen dollar amounts of $5,000 to $7,000 charged to residents who hadn’t done abatement, and wondered if that was too steep for residents. Van Son answered that the amounts were based on the size of the parcels; the bigger the property the higher the fees.

Ultimately, the council voted to adopt the resolution confirming the $106,673.58 amount for the abatement by a 5-0 vote.

The council then heard the presentation from Bryson on the fire department’s response to the Llano Fire at the end of June.

The Llano Fire was a vegetation fire that broke out the afternoon of June 28 near 6705 Llano Road in Atascadero, threatening nearby structures and prompting swift evacuation orders. The fire was declared 100% controlled at the end of day. Bryson stated at the time that the fire is believed to have started from a backyard barbecue, quickly spreading to the grass behind the structure and then moved up the hill behind the house. AFD investigators eventually rule the cause of the fire to be accidental.

Bryson explained the process of battling the fire, from the cooperation of APD and Chief Suttles, to working with numerous city and county agencies, and executing early evacuations.

“We set up command posts, and started talking to all resources,” Bryson said. “We had a lot of radio traffic, up to six frequencies, and talked to aircraft, talked to city agencies, talked to county agencies, and had forward progress stopped after two hours, and full containment in two days. It was a small fire but we were successful — tactics were good, and handled very well.”

Bryson and the council agreed that the fire, while a very serious manner, seemed to serve as a de facto learning experience for the responders.

“[The fire] scared all of us, but it seemed like kind of a practice run for you to prepare for any future fires,” Councilmember Heather Newsom said.

All the councilmembers were very complimentary on the job the responders did on the fire, but did have some concerns, one of which were evacuations.

“As far as evacuations, I wonder if there was a problem getting in while others were getting out,” said Mayor Pro Tem Mark Dariz, in asking about the process of getting people out.

“Yes that is a consideration, sending people out on narrow roads,” Bryson answered. “We didn’t have many traffic holdups, but we can consider that, and give updates on routes.”

Suttles said his department had Dariz’s concerns in mind when answering the call.

“We only evacuate those in extreme danger and it’s because of your point,” the police chief said. “We have police travel next to firefighters to see where they need to go, and then make a plan.”

The other concern councilmembers had was being able to inform residents of any danger and evacuations, with Councilmember Susan Funk, noting that with two dispatchers on a regular shift, they can be overwhelmed.

“Not only to people in the area, but notification to people out of the area who may not be near their homes,” she said. “[The fire] wasn’t listed at top of your websites, why is that? And we need to discussion if people with cellphones can access.

Bryson said AFD was making efforts to update its social media as much as possible during the fire, but would address the website notices for the future and that the cellphone access during emergencies was “an ongoing discussion.”

Other concerns brought up for future emergencies were the evacuation of animals from fire areas, and also whether the resident who inadvertently started the fire would be liable for damages. To that, Bryson said the fire was ruled accidental and damage was minimal, and he considered the specific case closed.

Before adjournment, Bourbeau stated the City Council would be taking the next schedule meeting date (Aug. 26) off and would next meet on Monday, Sept. 9, at 6 p.m.