• Rebuilding momentum is accelerating in Palisades and Altadena, with about 12% to 13% of destroyed homes receiving permits as of December, up from a slow start.

• Both communities’ recovery pace falls between Santa Rosa’s rapid 27% permit rate and Paradise’s slower 3%, showing mid-range progress rebuilding.

• Fire victims face significant obstacles: understaffing at city agencies, supply chain delays, insurance gaps, and a strained labor market slowing construction timelines.

• The Collaboratory, an Altadena disaster relief hub, opened in October to house nonprofits serving fire survivors still rebuilding after January’s Eaton fire.

• The hub consolidates scattered aid for housing, mental health and permitting to address the complex needs survivors face.

• As charitable attention fades, the Collaboratory is a critical lifeline for those still at risk of community displacement.

The first thing you see when you walk into the Collaboratory in Altadena is a wall of devastation. A floor-to-ceiling map of every lot lost to the Eaton fire in January — 9,413 structures. Each marked with a red dot on a grid of streets that have looked like a charred moonscape for 11 months.

The wall is a harrowing depiction of loss in the Eaton fire. But one turn to the right, and hope kicks back in.