Fire at abandoned home spread to his house. A Larchmont man is determined to rebuild
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- A fast-moving fire from an abandoned Larchmont house destroyed Juan Galicia’s 1910 Craftsman home, displacing his extended family and killing two dogs, but not his resolve to rebuild.
- Since the March 8 blaze, Galicia has juggled hefty rent and mortgage costs while battling trespassers and debris on his property and the vacant lot next door.
- His struggle underscores a wider Los Angeles problem: neglected properties vulnerable to crime
Juan Galicia stood in front of the ruins of his Larchmont home, the burned-out frame of a 1910 Craftsman.
From the front steps, he spoke about what this house had meant to him and his family. For 18 years, this was his home, where his three children grew up, where one of his sons got married in the front yard and a grandchild was born.
On March 8, the house went up in flames after fire spread from an abandoned home on an adjacent lot, said Galicia, a contractor and pastor. Seeing his place in its current state has dampened his spirits but not his determination to rebuild.
“I don’t know how long it’s gonna take me to, but I am,” Galicia said.
The issues Galicia is facing are not unique to his neighborhood. Within Los Angeles City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez’s district, which includes Larchmont, the city is keeping track of five to 10 properties that are in similar condition and facing similar problems, said Nick Barnes-Batista, a spokesperson for Soto-Martinez. The lot next to Galicia’s has been on the city’s radar since at least late January, Barnes-Batista said.
Amid California’s housing crisis, any empty lot in a residential neighborhood is an opportunity to add much-needed shelter, either a single-family home or an apartment building.
Recently in West Hollywood, a pack of coyotes began occupying an abandoned condominium construction site. In North Hollywood last year, neighbors complained that an empty apartment building had turned into a drug den. It eventually was torn down.
It has not been easy for Galicia. While he’s trying to rebuild, he’s had to fend off transients who trespass onto his property on a regular basis. Meanwhile, he complains that the city has done little to keep trespassers out of his home or the neighboring lot, or to help him find the resources to rebuild — claims that the office of Soto-Martinez disputed.
During a tour of the charred remains of his home, Galicia pointed to condom wrappers strewn throughout the house and a box of spent nitrous oxide canisters. The gas is commonly inhaled by people to get high.
In the front yard, a new-looking sleeping bag, which Galicia said was freshly used, lay cast aside.
In an attempt to keep people off of his property, Galicia put up chain-link fencing to separate his home from the adjacent lot. But he says efforts to keep unwanted visitors out have proved futile, and he frequently sees new evidence of trespassers.
Meanwhile, he said the lot next door remains unsecured and swamped with trash from transients. Left behind is a charred-out refrigerator, bed frames, a worn-out and graffiti-covered couch, piles of left-behind clothes and the burnt debris of the home that once stood there.
Staff members from Soto-Martinez’s office said they’d directed Galicia to various city departments for assistance, but he said it’s been to no avail.
Galicia said he has been strapped for cash and his home insurance fell short of covering the loss. In the months since the fire, which displaced 10 family members, he’s been paying $6,000 in rent on top of his $2,000 mortgage each month — a financial and emotional drain.
“I have loans to pay, I have taxes to pay,” Galicia said.
The fire started on the afternoon of March 8 while Galicia was at Ministerio Esperanza Church in South L.A., where he serves as pastor. The fire quickly spread to Galicia’s home and another property, a Los Angeles Fire Department report said. It took more than eight hours and dozens of firefighters to knock down.
Although no family members were injured, two of his dogs were killed, Galicia said.
No definitive cause was determined in the Fire Department report, which said the home on the lot next door was knocked down after the fire because it was a “public hazard.”
The lot next to Galicia’s home, plus an adjacent one, were set to be developed into a 22-unit, four-story apartment complex, according to documents from the Department of City Planning. The most recent filings for the project were submitted to the city in 2021. The identified developer did not respond to a request for comment.
Galicia said he returns to his property every evening for a few hours, just to be back home. The place is completely charred, but the framing and rooms remain partially intact.
For now, Galicia said he’s focused on rebuilding and plans to do it in a Craftsman style. But he’s unsure how long it will take since he will have to pay for much of the project out of pocket.
“I’m in a really serious position,” he said. “I have lost everything.”
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