Latest news with #Ruffner
Axios
25-04-2025
- Business
- Axios
Sheetz keeps expanding across Central Ohio
Sheetz's rapid expansion into the Columbus region hasn't run out of gas. Driving the news: The Pennsylvania-based chain known for its cheap eats and cult following is on track to meet its goal of opening over 50 new stores in the area by the year's end. What they're saying: Over 40 are already open and several are planned through early 2026, spokesperson Nick Ruffner tells us. Up next, in May: 1555 Polaris Parkway and 5757 W. Broad St. in Galloway. "We are grateful for the warm reception we've received from the residents of central Ohio," Ruffner says. The intrigue: The chain is apparently more iconic in its home state than Crayola crayons and Hershey's chocolate.
USA Today
01-04-2025
- General
- USA Today
A first-of-its-kind neighborhood in California fights fire by just existing
A first-of-its-kind neighborhood in California fights fire by just existing Insurers say a neighborhood like the one built in Southern California protects residents from fire — and perhaps other close by properties as well. Show Caption Hide Caption Timelapse shows speed of Palisades fire in California A timelapse video shows the speed of the devastating Palisades fire in California, which has forced thousands to flee. In June, Steve Ruffner watched a demonstration where two sheds were set on fire. As a result of what he saw, people 30 miles north of San Diego are now moving into homes far less likely to burn in a wildfire. 'I was shocked,' said Ruffner, who is president of KB Home Coastal, a large U.S. home builder. The company had already broken ground on a 64-home development in the city of Escondido. After a rapid redesign – and with the city's enthusiastic blessing – it was built as the nation's first fire resilient community, a distinction touted by KB Home Coastal and confirmed by insurance groups. The first residents have already moved in. Insurers say a neighborhood like the one built in Southern California protects residents from fire — and perhaps other close by properties as well. That's because having a whole community that resists fire could act like a fire break, giving neighboring communities a buffer from wildfire. What Ruffner saw in June was the power of small and relatively inexpensive changes to standard building practices that can significantly protect homes from wildfires. The demonstration sheds had been built side-by-side, one to building code from 1980s, the other to California's Wildfire Building Code, which mandates fire-resistant construction methods and materials. While officials, contractors and builders watched, fires were lit in the wood chips in the flower beds in front of the sheds, then large fans were turned on to mimic conditions during the hot, windy weather of a Red Flag fire event. "The one built to the 1980s code burned down in 45 minutes," said Ruffner. "The other one didn't burn at all.' Knowing the development was in an area at high wildfire risk, Ruffner went back to his architects and designers and asked "How fast can we pivot?" Their goal was to incorporate the highest wildfire resilience standards developed by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), a nonprofit, scientific research and communications organization supported by property insurers. Designers tweaked plans and materials and changed landscaping to add features that protect against the biggest fire dangers – flying embers, flames and radiant heat. These included: Covered gutters to keep embers out Enclosed eaves so embers can't be sucked into attics Stucco and fiber cement siding that can't burn Tempered-glass windows that don't shatter in heat Patios, doors and roofing that can't burn Metal fencing so fire can't follow fence lines to a house At least five feet of low-combustible, defensive space around all the homes None of these measures is hugely expensive or difficult but together they help create houses much less likely to burn if a wildfire threatens the area. A force multiplier for fire safety The homes in the Dixon Trails development conform to IBHS's Wildfire-Prepared Home Plus designation, its most stringent standard. Once inspected they can be certified, potentially lowering insurance costs. Such standards are not new though they have evolved significantly over the years. Homes in California, Arizona and across the country began adding fire safe features to make existing and new-built homes more fire resistant in early 1990s. Experience, testing and inspection of homes that survive major wildfires has helped standards become more effective. A home built to the highest fire standards stands a good chance of surviving fires that others don't. "If there's a fire in the foothills behind a neighborhood, embers may fly in and land, but they're going to fizzle out because there's nothing to ignite," said Roy Wright, CEO of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. During the 2022 Oak fire in Mariposa County, California, homes that were compliant with defensible space standards were six times more likely to survive, according to the California Wildfire & Forest Resilience Task Force. What is new in Escondido is than an entire neighborhood has been built to these standards, adding a significant layer of survivability. Fires are different from hurricanes and tornadoes, notes said Karen Collins, vice president for Property & Environmental with the American Property Casualty Insurance Association. A reinforced roof or impact-resistant storm shutters offers good protection for the homeowner – what their neighbors do isn't really important. "When you hurricane-harden your home, you do you and you're done," she said. Fire does not respect property lines and jumps from house to house. What happens on your neighbor's property can matter a lot to what happens on yours. "If your house is perfect but your neighbor's is a trash heap, all that fire is going to come your way," said Wright. That's the power of a wildfire prepared neighborhood, he said. "It literally acts as a passive fire break just by the way its constructed and developed," he said. Not only are the homes in the development protected from fire leapfrogging from lot to lot, but other neighborhoods nearby are safer too. "Depending on which way the winds are blowing, this neighborhood could likely shelter an older neighborhood that's adjacent to it," Wright said. Insurance savings for fire-safe homes As millions of homeowners have learned, America is in the midst of an insurance crisis as climate change effects intensify potential property damage from wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes and flooding and insurers scramble to price rising risk. Between 2000 to about 2013, insurance costs made up 7% to 8% of the typical mortgage payment. Starting around 2013, premiums surged. As of 2022, insurance costs made up more than 20% of the typical mortgage payment, according to data from analytics provider First Street. Hardening a home, or a neighborhood, against wildfire and having it certified as such can lower costs and make it more likely insurance won't be dropped. "These certifications are recognized widely by insurers nationally and improve insurability," said Janet Ruiz with the Insurance Information Institute. "There are many companies that offer discounts to homeowners who have these certifications. The range varies by company, often 5 to 20%," she said. It can also raise a home's value. An Alabama study found that homes whose roofs are fortified against hurricane damage sold on average for 7% higher, said Collins. A growing need nationwide The need for such homes isn't confined to California. With the climate warming and drying, the threat is everywhere. Recently, fires have burned in the Carolinas, Texas, Oklahoma and Florida. Because the changes aren't really that major, the cost isn't much higher than regular construction. A study done in 2022 estimated the cost to construct a wildfire resistant new home was about $3,000 more than a regular home. "If someone wants to build a concrete and steel bunker and spend $5 million doing it I'm not going to tell them they're wrong," Wright said. "But what this demonstrates is that there are normal ways to build, with small modifications, that provide significant wildfire protection. We can start thinking of this as normal." He also emphasized that such building isn't necessary everywhere, only in wildfire-prone areas. "This is not appropriate in downtown Long Beach," said Wright. "If you are far away from an area at high risk for wildfire, none of this is needed."
NBC News
27-03-2025
- Business
- NBC News
KB Home unveils its first 'fire-resilient' community in Southern California
Just months after raging wildfires destroyed thousands of homes in the Los Angeles area, California-based KB Home is unveiling what it calls its first 'wildfire-resilient' community. The development, in Escondido, just outside San Diego, will have 64 single-family homes when completed that all meet the wildfire resilience standards developed by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), a nonprofit, scientific research and communications organization supported by property insurers. These standards are designed to protect the homes against the three major sources of ignition during a wildfire: Flying embers, flames and radiant heat. A handful of homes in the development are now complete, with roughly 20 homes already sold. Three homeowners have moved in, according to KB Home. The homes are built with covered gutters, enclosed eaves, noncombustible siding — like stucco and fiber cement — tempered-glass windows, and non-combustible patios, doors and roofing. They have six-inch vertical clearance using the concrete foundation, stucco and stone. They also incorporate defensible space with low-combustible vegetation at least 5 feet from the homes. Metal fencing is used throughout the neighborhood. Steve Ruffner, regional general manager of KB Home's coastal division, said he and his colleagues saw a fire-resistant home demonstration by IBHS at the Pacific Coast Builders Conference last summer and were impressed by the opportunity this type of community presented. Since KB Home had already broken ground on the development, they had to change gears quickly to incorporate the fire-resilient components. 'We had to change the architecture on the fly to a more stucco-oriented architecture with fire-resistant shutters, or fire-free shutters and doors and tempered windows. We were able to do that really quickly with the city, because they wanted to work with us. They really understood that this was important for their city,' Ruffner said. He called it more of a research and development project to see what the costs might be and how to work with trade partners to lower that cost, although he wouldn't say how much those costs increased. The homes range from $1 million to the low millions, which tends to be a move-up price in that area for single-family, detached homes. 'We're trying to get the cost to a reasonable place, because we really specialize in first-time buyers and first-time move-up buyers. So we want to make sure we can get this in a good place where it's affordable to do it and it's also got a good payback to the customer in a form of safety,' he added. As climate change causes more severe drought in more areas of the country, focus is shifting to fire-resistant homes and communities. During the the Palisades Fire in January, some homes that had been specifically built to fire-resistant standards remained unscathed while everything around them was destroyed. These types of homes, however, are largely one-offs by custom builders. There has been progress in California on a home-by-home basis, according to IBHS, but KB Home is the first big production builder in the country that has designed and is fully building out 64 homes all to meet the wildfire-prepared neighborhood standard. Among the specifications, homes are spaced 10 feet apart to help slow the progression of a fire. 'This subdivision built by KB Home, it's really the test bed to show this and demonstrate it,' said Roy Wright, CEO of IBHS. 'I know that KB Home already has two other projects here in Escondido, looking at duplexes and other kinds of town homes, and I do imagine that other builders are going to quickly follow suit. They're going to be building the homes that Californians want to buy.' Wright emphasized that part of the draw is not just to build a home that is survivable, but also one that is insurable. Insurance companies have been pulling out of California in droves, leaving homeowners with soaring costs and some without insurance entirely. Though the homes are billed as fire-resilient, that doesn't mean they are entirely risk-free. Homeowners and cities are going to have to make changes when it comes to non-combustible landscaping, elevations and even design. The real test will come in the future, should the community be in the line of a wildfire. 'Nothing is ever fireproof. We're always just seeking to try to narrow those paths of destruction,' said Wright.
