Stateline's lively 2008 New Year's celebrations may also usher in a new era in home building. That's the date a new set of building codes, designed to prevent homes being destroyed during a wildfire, become effective.

California's Wildland-Urban Interface Building Codes were created to make homes near wild areas less susceptible to the potentially devastating effects of direct heat and flames, as well as burning embers on homes. Embers blown well ahead of the fire front have been blamed for the destruction of many of the 254 homes torched during the June Angora fire.

The codes will be required for new construction in areas falling under state responsibility and rated as having moderate to very high fire risk in California's proposed 2007 Fire Hazard Severity Zone Maps.

Homes burned by the Angora fire and much of the unincorporated developments at the South Shore will be governed by the new codes that include changes to the requirements for windows, siding, decks and vents.

John Pang, fire chief with Meeks Bay Fire Protection District, has been trained on the new codes, but did not recommend specific products for compliance. Homeowners should look for a California state fire marshal stamp when purchasing construction materials, Pang said.

Getting a moderately sized home up to code will cost around $3,000, but may increase depending on the size of the house.

Windows will be the most expensive component of the new codes, Pang said.

Tempered glass - a new code requirement - adds about 30 percent to the cost of dual-pane windows, said Roger Hubbard, president of Lakeside Glass, in Stateline.

Although homeowners planning to rebuild could save a significant amount of money by submitting building applications to El Dorado County by Dec. 28, thereby falling under the current regulations, fire officials prefer the new codes.

"We are encouraging victims of the Angora fire to reconstruct to these standards, because you don't want this to happen again," said Mary Huggins, CAL FIRE division chief and forester.

While the codes are not required by California within South Lake Tahoe city limits, the new regulations may influence construction here as well.

In his July 17 staff report to the city council, South Lake Tahoe City Manager David Jinkens said Fire Marshal Ray Zachau and city building official Ron Ticknor will discuss possible amendments to the building code similar to the new Angora-area codes.

Eighty percent of South Lake Tahoe homes exist in high-hazard areas, according to the recently completed fire hazard analysis map of El Dorado County.

Local resident Drake Niven doesn't need an analysis map to understand the fire hazard some building materials present.

His home on Mt. Diablo Circle is one of the few left standing.

Niven's deck - made of a composite material - in conjunction with fire-resistant cement siding on his home aren't a "magic bullet" guaranteeing a home's preservation during a wildfire, Niven said. But combined with defensible space and the efforts of firefighters, he's certain they helped protect his home against a fire he described as sounding like a "squadron of 747's."

He cited two other homes built with similar materials still standing in neighborhoods experiencing widespread damage.

"One could say we got lucky, but the firefighters said it gave us an edge," Niven said.