Cox Castle Partners Quoted in Special Edition ULI Magazine
The Urban Land Institute recently released the Urban Land Magazine, Summer 2025 Special Limited Edition, focused on the latest updates in the aftermath and recovery of the January 2025 wildfires in Southern California. The publication provides updates on the latest efforts, offers roadmaps to recovery, and informs readers on the challenges the recovery process still faces. Throughout the publication, three Cox Castle attorneys were quoted for their insight and expertise on various subjects. Here is a breakdown of everything:
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"Rebuilding Los Angeles—on Toxic Soil?" looks at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' unorthodox decision not to test the soil of the Eaton and Palisades wildfires for dangerous materials and substances such as asbestos or lead. Partner Preston Brooks warns that the "ash footprint" left over from the fires can leave these dangerous materials everywhere, warning “You can’t always see or smell toxic chemicals—that’s why you do [soil] sampling to make sure." He is quoted several times throughout the article on these practices, the testing that has been done by third parties, and the dangers still at play.
- "Can Reforms Speed L.A.’s Permitting, Rebuilding, after the Fires?" looks at Los Angeles' historically slow permitting process. In the aftermath of the fires, Mayor Karen Bass has instituted a self-certification program" to expedite the permitting process. This program was recommended through Project Recovery, a report developed by ULI Los Angeles, UCLA, and USC, which provides actionable recommendations to expedite recovery from the fires. Partner David Waite, who led the self-certification efforts of Project Recovery, provides updates on the program and how it's implementation will impact families affected by the firest. “Certainty, with respect to time, is really important, so families can plan when they can return and rebuild. It’s really important that there be a degree of certainty, so that they can replan their lives and maintain stability.”
- "After the Fires: A Blueprint for Los Angeles Infrastructure Recovery" discusses the many infrastructure projects that need to be rebuilt after the wildfires, including water and electrical systems, roads, parks, and libraries, among others. Many of these projects plan to upgrade the systems that were in place to alleviate potential threats of causing fire or additional damage if caught on fire. Partner Mitch Menzer, who co-led the infrastructure section of Project Recovery and is quoted throughout the article, advocates that infrastructure is essential to the rebuild, saying, “There needs to be a clear infrastructure reconstruction plan—a complete assessment, and determinations about what’s going to be rebuilt and how,” Menzer says. “The infrastructure timing is really critical, because it may take a year, 18 months, to rebuild those homes, but there has to be infrastructure [present] to make sure that those homes can be occupied.”
