Rick Caruso, the developer and longtime civic leader, launched a new foundation on Monday to hasten the rebuilding from wildfires in Los Angeles and Altadena by convening top engineering and technology companies and pushing for a quick recovery that aims to prevent future calamities.
The foundation, Steadfast LA, already has a roster of industry-leading names who have signed on: Andy Cohen, co-chair of architecture and design powerhouse Gensler; Carey Smith, president and chief executive of infrastructure engineering giant Parsons; Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos and his wife, former Ambassador Nicole Avant; Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale; and executives from banking, insurance, real estate and private equity.
Caruso told The Times in an interview this weekend that Steadfast LA would tackle the most pressing challenges facing Pacific Palisades, Altadena, Malibu and Pasadena by tapping experts for innovative solutions and closely collaborating with all levels of government. Calling the scale of the reconstruction effort “way too big for the government alone,” Caruso cited Operation Warp Speed — which developed the vaccine against COVID-19 — and the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan after 9/11 as inspirations for the public-private partnership he envisions.
“I wanted to bring together some of the smartest people in different fields and literally roll up our sleeves, get our hands dirty,” Caruso said. “What I’m telling our team is to bend the curve. If we think it’s going to take three years, how do we get things moving in a year? If we think it’s gonna be a year, how do we get things moving in six months?”
The foundation will be funded solely by Caruso, who said he plans to commit “millions.” None of the companies or executives involved as advisors, who also include Mike Hopkins, chief of Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video, will be compensated. If approached by outside donors, Caruso said, he and his team will pair them with schools, churches or others in need.
During the 2022 mayor’s race, Caruso poured millions into his campaign against Karen Bass. After his defeat, Caruso took on a lower profile, but that gave way after the Palisades fire broke out on Jan. 7. As Bass was flying back from Ghana and the city burned, Caruso gave a series of interviews accusing her of showing a lack of leadership and criticizing her absence during a crisis.
Caruso told The Times that he wanted to put their differences aside and that he planned to phone Bass on Monday and pledge the foundation’s help in rebuilding.
“This has nothing to do about politics, and I will gladly have her be the hero, because this is all about the thousands and thousands of people that are displaced,” he said. “If we do a great job, which I think we’re going to — we’re going to work really hard — and it helps her do a good job, and she comes out as a great mayor of the city for moving this along, I’ll be thrilled.”
Caruso said he had already shared his plans for the foundation with Gov. Gavin Newsom at a recent meeting and that the two were in contact “almost every day.” He said he also planned to call California Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and the White House.
Caruso, 66, has deep experience in building — or attempting to build — in cities across the region and navigating thickets of red tape. His malls, including the iconic Grove, and apartment complexes sit in the San Fernando Valley, Calabasas, Thousand Oaks, Glendale and central L.A. He struggled for years to win approval to rebuild on the site of a long-vacant hotel in Montecito, eventually opening the Rosewood Miramar. Projects in Arcadia and Carlsbad, however, never made it through the approval process.
Among the ways the foundation could help, he said, is by expediting how cities issue residential building permits. His team is exploring how artificial intelligence could be integrated with existing municipal codes to review construction plans and quickly flag code violations, citing a pilot program in Austin, Texas. He said the foundation would use its influence to help resolve anticipated supply chain issues, like sourcing concrete and other materials needed for such a large-scale rebuilding.
The foundation will also propose ways to upgrade the region’s infrastructure to be more resistant to wildfire and other potential calamities. Caruso, who served on the L.A. Department of Water and Power board for more than a decade, said he would push for installing power lines underground, boosting water supplies for fire hydrants and updating water mains.
“We shouldn’t go back to old systems. You’ve got to have the backbone of these areas be in the 21st century,” he said.
Caruso also said he plans to use the bully pulpit to advocate for struggling residents and businesses. He pointed to his statements this weekend criticizing Bass’ decision to remove the National Guard, scale back LAPD officers’ presence and reopen Pacific Palisades, which she quickly reversed late Saturday.
Some of those involved in the foundation lost their homes in the Palisades fire. Caruso said his family lost three homes — two in the Palisades and one in Malibu — giving him a front-row view to comparing the response by the city of L.A. against that of L.A. County, which handles firefighting and public works in unincorporated areas like Altadena and smaller cities like Malibu.
“Obviously, we are fortunate with the resources we have, but I see the pain my daughter has in losing a home, and how we feel as a family losing a home,” he said. “But it’s not just losing your home. They lost their way of life — everything that connected and made community is gone … Their home, where they feel safe? Gone. The local park? Gone. Rec center? Gone.”
“It’s just massively devastating,” he continued.
The foundation will be run by Najla Kayyem, a commercial real estate executive who worked for Caruso in the early aughts and recently was an executive vice president at Pacific Retail Capital Partners, an L.A.-based outfit that owns or manages malls across the U.S.
Kayyem will initially work out of Caruso’s offices at the Grove and will later move to “ground zero” in the Palisades, Caruso said. Another office serving Altadena may open at the Americana, the Glendale shopping and apartment complex that Caruso owns.
Times staff writer Julia Wick contributed to this report.
