Firewise Community

Updated map with all exits

 

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE NEXT FIRE SEASON?

The Pinery Homeowners’ Association (PHA), Inc. is committed to making The Pinery a safe place to live.  We live in a high-risk wildfire area and need to work together to do all we can to reduce the risk of wildfire destruction to our homes and families. In 2011, The Pinery had to evacuate due to fire.  Had the winds not shifted homes would have been lost in The Pinery.  Residents need to continue doing Fire Mitigation activities and be prepared to evacuate if necessary.  Colleen Potton, The South Metro Fire Rescue’s Community Risk Reduction Specialist for The Pinery area stated that “We have seen in Colorado Springs and more recently in California how fast a wildfire can move.  Therefore, today is the day to prepare your home for an evacuation.”

Here are important steps you can take for your family’s safety.

  1. Sign up for Douglas County Emergency Notification System -CodeRED (Reverse 911)
    CodeRED is a high-speed telephone emergency notification service allowing public safety agencies to deliver pre-recorded information to targeted areas within the County.  Registration is not automatic, but it may be critical to your safety.  Please register online at the Douglas County Sheriff website, www.DCSheriff.net

  2. Develop an evacuation plan -  The fire station meeting room is not available for a planning meeting at this time due to Covid. Watch the newsletter and this website for updates.
    This plan needs to cover what you will take, how you will get out of the house if your usual door is not safe, how you will leave the neighborhood, where you will go and how you will communicate with family members and friends. There is also good information at www.ready.gov/plan 

  3. Participate in The Pinery’s Test Evacuation Drill - THE 2020 EVACUATION DRILL HAS BEEN POTPONED and will be rescheduled.
    In a drill, those residents who are participating would get a Code Red system notification around 9 a.m. and would then exit The Pinery to a specified Parker location, where we would have a debriefing session at 11 a.m.-12 p.m. As in a real situation, some exits may be marked as blocked for participants.  Firefighters will knock on a few doors and run hoses at a few agreed upon participating residences.  To have the Sheriff’s office “test” the Code Red system, we need to have at least 180 (10%) of our households who agree to participate in this.   This drill not only helps test our preparedness for a real event, but also gives the Sheriff’s office and the Fire Department an opportunity to test their preparedness.  We will also need some volunteers to help with drill preparation.  All drill participants will be entered in a drawing of three $25 gift cards.

Chipper Days

Chipper Days is now CLOSED for 2023. Please keep an eye out for next years event!

Help your Neighbors with Fire Mitigation

We are looking for adults and teenagers to help elderly or disabled residents with light pruning and removing debris from their yards.  Teenagers can earn Community Service Hours.  This can be done throughout the year. However, September would be a good time as the chipping truck services will be in October.  

If you are elderly or disabled and need help with fire mitigation, please call the PHA office at 303-841-8572 or email us at PHA@Pinery.org and we will try to match you with volunteers.

 

Fire Mitigation in the Pinery

In 2016 The Pinery became certified as a FIREWISE USA Community, FIREWISE USA is a national recognition program that helps communities take action and ownership in preparing and protecting their homes against the threat of wildfire. We live in a high-risk wildfire area and need to work together to do all we can to reduce the risk of wildfire destruction to our homes and families. 

What does this mean?


If we, as a community, maintain our FIREWISE status, it means that:

  1. you may qualify for a reduction in your homeowner’s insurance premium;
  2. Property owners can deduct certain mitigation costs from their federal taxable income when filing Colorado Taxes.  

All South Metro homes are eligible for a FREE fire mitigation property assessment to reduce the risk of wildfire damage. Schedule an appointment by emailing riskreduction@southmetro.org or at 303-419-8807.

If you are not able to arrange for this free assessment, click here for a video with valuable information.

So that the Pinery can continue to maintain its
FIREWISE USA status WE NEED YOUR HELP!  

Your Fire Mitigation Hours and Expenses are Needed!

In order to maintain our FIREWISE certification we need to report the equivalent of one volunteer hour per household. So, for The Pinery, that is 1800 hours.  This can be a combination of volunteer hours and expenses for equipment used for fire mitigation or paying someone for fire mitigation work. 

How to report:
      Click "LOG MITIGATION HOURS" below and complete the simple form.

 

 

ALL HOMEOWNERS WHO COMPLETE THIS FORM
WILL BE ENTERED IN A QUARTERLY DRAWING FOR ONE OF THREE
$25.00 GIFT CARDS TO LOCAL BUSINESSES. 

 

Thank you for your support in maintaining
the Pinery’s FIREWISE USA status!

Add your hours to the

Log Mitigation Hours

 

South Metro Fire Rescue Neighborhood Mitigation Planning Guide - Great resource for native wildfire resistant ground cover, shrubs and trees.

Colorado Firewise USA Site

Learn how to make a Fire bypass your house!

Wildfire Preparedness link - Southmetro Fire website 

See other instructional information