Seismic Retrofit Program
for Existing Wood-Frame Soft-Story Buildings
The City of Beverly Hills is taking a proactive approach to earthquake safety with the goal to help protect people and minimize damage of vulnerable buildings in the event of a major earthquake. As such, the City has developed a mandatory seismic retrofit ordinance intended at strengthening existing wood-frame multi-family soft-story buildings.
The new ordinance (No. 18-O-2767) was adopted at the December 11, 2018 formal City Council meeting. The ordinance becomes effective on January 11, 2019.
Once effective, the new mandatory ordinance will address soft-story buildings which are most vulnerable and have been identified with the following criteria:
- A permit for construction of a new building was applied for before January 1, 1978, or if no permit can be located, the structure is determined by the City Building Official to have been built under building code standards enacted prior to January 1, 1978, and
- The ground floor or basement portion of the structure contains parking or other similar open floor space that causes Soft, Weak, or Open-Front Wall lines and there exists one or more stories above.
Access the Ordinance here: Ordinance No. 18-O-2767
For additional information or for any questions, please contact Senior Plan Review Engineer, Arlen Eskandari, the City’s Seismic Retrofit Program project Manager at: (310)285-1113 or via email at: retrofit@beverlyhills.org.
IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS
Frequently Asked Questions - Click on the link below to access the document:
FAQ - PROPOSED MANDATORY SEISMIC RETROFIT ORDINANCE OF WOOD-FRAME SOFT-STORY BUILDINGS
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
RESOURCES
To find a California licensed engineer:
Please visit the State of California’s Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists and/or Structural Engineers Association of Southern California (SEAOSC) websites for information regarding licensed engineers (please use links below):
To find a California licensed architect:
To find a California licensed contractor:
Please visit the Contractors State License Board for information regarding hiring a contractor and to verify if a contractor is licensed and insured: http://cslb.ca.gov
California Department of Consumer Affairs: How to Hire a Contractor
Additional information:
2016 Safer Cities Survey - developed by The Dr. Lucy Jones Center in partnership with the Structural Engineers Association of Southern California (SEAOSC) which provides information on the risks of seismic events in Southern California, an overview of steps taken by jurisdictions in the Los Angeles region, and a description of vulnerable building types. 2016 Safer Cities Survey
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