Safety Element

Only areas below are considered part of the General Plan.

Overview

It is of fundamental importance to the City of Menifee to protect and preserve the health, safety, and welfare of the community to ensure that it continues to be a place people want to live, work, and spend their time. The Safety Element of the General Plan provides a strategy for city staff, residents, developers, and business owners to effectively address natural and man-made hazards in Menifee, including seismic and geological issues; flood hazards; fire hazards; hazardous materials; wind hazards; and disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. The policies and action items provided herein can help create a community that is minimally at risk from natural hazards and that responds quickly, effectively, and efficiently to those hazards. It is the primary goal of this document that as the policies and actions are implemented over the next 20 years, the City of Menifee will be increasingly less impacted by disasters, and in the process, become more self-reliant, sustainable, and prosperous.

The 1st step in hazard mitigation is to understand the community's vulnerability to the various natural and man-made hazards that can impact the region. To that end, the Safety Element identifies the potential hazards that can significantly affect the City of Menifee. More in-depth information regarding these hazards is provided in the supporting Technical Background Report.

Purpose of Element

Section 65302 of the State of California Government Code identifies 7 mandatory elements in a General Plan, including Safety. Section 65302 (g) defines the types of hazards that need to be identified and addressed. The following hazards, along with strong winds, hazardous materials, and critical facilities (including airports) and emergency response, are considered in Menifee's Safety Element.

1. Seismic hazards, including strong ground shaking, surface fault rupture, and seismically induced ground failure, such as liquefaction and slope failures;
2. Geologic hazards, including slope instability due to non-seismic causes, and subsidence;
3. Flooding hazards, including storm-induced flooding, inundation resulting from the failure of water reservoirs, dams, and levees, and areas vulnerable to flooding after wildfires;
4. Fire hazards, including both wildland fires and structure fires in the urban area.

The Safety Element is written in conjunction and designed to work together with all other elements of the General Plan, most notably the Housing and Open Space and Conservation Elements. For example, the Safety Element contains policies and programs to address future drainage and flood hazards for housing sites. The Housing Element will comply with these requirements, and any future updates to the Housing Element will incorporate any changes in flood hazard and management information. Additionally, one of the goals of the Open Space and Conservation Element is to identify and protect sensitive environments and preserve amenities such as the rock features, natural landforms, and ridgelines that characterize Menifee. These landforms are the result of active natural processes (such as erosion) that have the potential to cause future damage to the built environment and are therefore best left either undeveloped, or developed following careful design guidelines. These issues are discussed in the Safety Element. The goals of the Open Space and Conservation Element echo this concern by identifying some of these safety constraints as resources that merit conservation. The Safety Element also works together with various federal, state, and local regulations such as the Federal Clean Water Act, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the California Building and Fire Codes, and the Menifee Municipal Code, to protect the health, safety, and welfare of Menifee's residents, visitors, and businesses.

Background

This element describes the natural and man-made hazards most likely to impact the Menifee area. To reduce their potential effect on the community, these hazards should be carefully considered when new development or redevelopment is proposed in the area. Some issues should be considered for all types of development, whereas others are specific to critical or essential facilities or infrastructure. These distinctions are spelled out where appropriate.

The Safety Element covers 6 general topics: seismic and geological issues; flood hazards; fire hazards; hazardous materials; wind hazards; and disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. A brief description of each of these topics is presented alongside the related goal and policies to provide context. For more detailed information on each of these issues and how they relate to Menifee's past and future, please review the General Plan exhibits and related documents identified below.

Goals

Click on the goal links below to see the policies that are associated with the individual goals identified in this element. Readers should also refer to the Implementation Actions for additional items that must be undertaken by the City to achieve the goals and policies for this element.

• S-1: Seismic and Geological Issues. A community that is minimally impacted by seismic shaking and earthquake-induced or other geologic hazards.
• S-2: Seismic and Geological Issues. A community that has used engineering solutions to reduce or eliminate the potential for injury, loss of life, property damage, and economic and social disruption caused by geologic hazards such as slope instability; compressible, collapsible, expansive or corrosive soils; and subsidence due to groundwater withdrawal.
• S-3: Flood Hazards. A community that is minimally disrupted by flooding and inundation hazards.
• S-4: Fire Hazards. A community that has effective fire mitigation and response measures in place, and as a result is minimally impacted by wildland and structure fires.
• S-5: Hazardous Materials. A community that has reduced the potential for hazardous materials contamination.
• S-6: Disaster Prepardness, Response, and Recovery. A city that responds and recovers in an effective and timely manner from natural disasters such as flooding, fire, and earthquakes, and as a result is not impacted by civil unrest that may occur following a natural disaster.
• S-7: Climate Adaptation and Resiliency. A community that has protected its sensitive structures, functions, and populations from the risks associated with climate change.  
• S-8 Police Services. A community that provides high-quality police services and effective police response to major disasters and emergency events.

General Plan Exhibits

• Exhibit S-1: Fault Map
• Exhibit S-2: Slope Distribution
• Exhibit S-3: Liquefaction and Landslides
• Exhibit S-4: Geologic Map
• Exhibit S-5: Flood Hazards
• Exhibit S-6: High Fire Hazard Areas
• Exhibit S-7: Critical Facilities
• Exhibit S-8: Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones and Public Facilities
• Exhibit S-9: Evacuation Routes