Rebuilding After the Almeda Fire: Wood Stove, Gas Insert or No Fireplace in Talent and Phoenix

The Fire and the Numbers

The Almeda fire began on September 8, 2020, in northern Ashland. The Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) staff report of October 2023 says it moved north up the Highway 99 and Bear Creek corridor through Talent, Phoenix and unincorporated Jackson County, and burned approximately 3,000 acres. The state emergency management (OEM) after-action report dated June 30, 2023 lists the Almeda Glendower fire as 09/08/2020 to 09/15/2020.

Published counts of lost homes differ by source, date and what is counted, so each figure below is named.

Rebuilding Progress, With Dates

We found no current rebuild percentage published by Talent or Phoenix that we could read in a primary source. The newest figures we could verify are from February 2022 (Jackson County) and April 2023 (City of Phoenix). They mostly count permits issued, not finished homes, although the county also reported certificates of occupancy.

In a letter dated April 13, 2023, the City of Phoenix wrote of "permits being issued for the replacement of 99% of single-family homes and 93% of multiple-family dwelling units lost in the Almeda Fire in Phoenix." The same letter says "There is also much work left to be done within the existing city limits to replace manufactured homes and commercial structures lost in the fire." That is a permits-issued figure, not a completed one. In the February 2022 table, manufactured homes in parks trailed single-family homes in both cities, which is why the manufactured home rules below are part of this guide.

Wood Stoves in Talent and Phoenix

The two city sections are the same in substance. Each begins with its purpose, "to reduce the amount of particulate pollution resulting from wood burning for space heating," and then sets conditions on installing a solid fuel heating device.

Neither code defines "new construction" or says whether rebuilding a home destroyed by the fire counts. Neither says what happens to a rebuilt home that has only a wood stove, beyond the bar on issuing a permit. We would not assume an answer either way.

Talent's online code says it is current through Ordinance 979, passed May 17, 2023, so confirm that nothing newer applies. The Phoenix page we read has no currency line. Talent's page on rebuilding homes lost in the Almeda fire gives submittal steps, mentions floodplain applications and elevation certificates, and lists Community Development at 541-535-7401. Neither that page nor Talent's building page mentions wood stoves or wildfire standards. Phoenix's building and planning pages could not be read when we tried, so we have not verified its procedures.

Wood Stove, Gas Insert or No Fireplace

State Wildfire Standards: Section R327

Oregon's wildfire hazard mitigation code standards are section R327 of the 2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code (ORSC). ORS 455.433, added in 2025, says the Department of Consumer and Business Services "shall adopt" those standards, that they "may only be applied to new construction of new buildings," and that the department "may not require a local government to adopt" them. The Building Codes Division (BCD) permanent rule, effective January 1, 2026, makes R327 "available for local adoption." BCD says the legislature repealed the statewide wildfire hazard map in 2025.

R327 applies only where a municipality has formally adopted it. BCD's local-adoption FAQ says: "No, Section R327 must be formally adopted by a local municipality for it to be enforced." BCD's wildfire hazard mitigation page lists Ashland, Bend, Deschutes County, Grants Pass and Sisters. Talent, Phoenix and Jackson County were not on that list when we read it on October 7, 2026. The page is undated, and we could not confirm from city or county pages that neither city has adopted R327 since. We therefore do not say that Talent or Phoenix requires ignition-resistant construction.

• Manufactured homes: BCD's FAQ says "Section R327 only applies to structures governed by the ORSC."
• Homes destroyed by fire: BCD's FAQ cites ORSC Section R102, which it quotes as saying that where it becomes necessary to repair or reconstruct a legally existing building damaged by fire and "prior to the damage the legally existing building did not contain unsafe conditions, the building may be reconstructed exactly as it existed prior to the damage."
• Chimneys: a keyword search of the R327 document (effective August 5, 2025) found no "chimney," "spark" or "flue" provision. R327 covers roofing, gutters, ventilation, exterior walls, overhanging projections, walking surfaces and glazing, among others. We did not read every subsection from R327.3.6 onward, and the ORSC's general chimney and fireplace chapters are outside R327 and not covered here.
• Vents: R327.3.2 requires ventilation openings to be covered with noncombustible corrosion-resistant metal wire mesh, vents designed to resist the intrusion of burning embers and flame, or other approved materials or devices, with mesh a minimum of 1/16 inch and a maximum of 1/8 inch. R327.3.2.1 bars vent openings on the underside of eaves, soffits or cornices, with two exceptions: building-official-approved flame and ember resistant vents, and openings 12 feet or more above grade.
• Voluntary hardening: BCD says hardening "may be voluntarily followed for new construction, and when replacing exterior elements of existing construction."

Manufactured Homes in a Rebuilt Park

For manufactured homes the federal rule is 24 CFR 3280.709(g). It says solid fuel burning fireplaces and fireplace stoves listed for residential use "may be installed in manufactured homes provided they and their installation conform to" the conditions it lists, and that "A fireplace or fireplace stove is not to be considered as a heating facility for determining compliance with subpart F of this part." We read the October 1, 2026 view on eCFR. The conditions include:

• Integral doors or shutters, complete means for venting through the roof, a combustion air inlet, a hearth extension and means to securely attach the appliance ((g)(1)).
• A listed factory-built chimney designed to attach directly to the appliance, with a termination device and a spark arrester as part of its listing ((g)(1)(i)).
• No installation in a sleeping room ((g)(1)(iv)).
• A hearth extension of noncombustible material not less than 3/8 inch thick, extending at least 16 inches in front of the opening and at least 8 inches beyond each side ((g)(1)(v)).
• A chimney that extends at least three feet above the part of the roof it passes through and at least two feet above the highest elevation of any part of the home within 10 feet of the chimney ((g)(1)(vii)).

Oregon Inspection and Certification for Manufactured Homes

Oregon Administrative Rule 918-500-0580 says solid fuel burning appliances, wood stoves and fireplaces listed or approved for manufactured dwelling or mobile home use, and listed pellet-fired appliances, "must be inspected by the municipality according to the Oregon Manufactured Dwelling Installation Specialty Code" (subsection 5(a)). Subsection (6) says solid fuel burning devices must be installed according to the manufacturer's installation instructions and the applicable requirements in the rules, and "must be certified as required by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality." We read the rule on oregon.public.law, which shows it as accessed May 26, 2025, and not on the Secretary of State site, so check the official text before relying on it.

Taken together, a stove in a rebuilt manufactured home cannot be what makes the home meet the federal heating standard. It is an addition that needs a listed chimney with a spark arrester, a location outside sleeping rooms, DEQ certification and municipal inspection. R327 does not apply to these homes.

Questions for the Building Department

• Does the city treat rebuilding a home destroyed in the fire as "new construction" under the alternate-heat condition in Talent Municipal Code 8.15.020 or Phoenix Municipal Code 8.20.020?
• Has the city adopted R327, and if so, how does it apply to a rebuild?
• What permit and inspection does the city require for a wood stove, a wood insert or a gas appliance?
• For a manufactured home, which inspection applies to the stove and its chimney?

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