Targeting property owners who need assistance to comply with San Francisco’s recently adopted mandatory soft story retrofit ordinance or who are interested in voluntarily retrofitting their building for seismic safety, the City of San Francisco will hosting a comprehensive Earthquake Retrofit Fair from 3pm to 7pm on January 28 at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.
∙ Nearly 60,000 Rentals In SF Are Currently Vulnerable To Collapse [SocketSite]
I wonder if the retrofit cost will be the last straw that pushes some small time rent controlled landlords out of the business. What is the standard retrofit for a soft story? A moment frame around the garage? That’s gonna cost more than a year’s rent revenue.
Probably that much.
The city is interested in reducing the need for emergency services, fire, and rescue in the event of a large quake (easy to imagine why, there’s going to be enough chaos from public infrastructure and first responders will be stuck in their own cities or helping their own families first). If small landlords can’t afford, they can sell into one of the best sales environments ever.
I’m not shedding tears.
Yes this forced upgrade is certainly the right thing to do. SF is unique in the Bay Area cities in how isolated it could become after the Big One. That means that self-sufficiency and damage mitigation are even more important.
The problem with the ordinance is that its over-broad and does not factor in location. This type of structure in the Marina is a possible issue. But on the bedrock which makes up much of the city east of twin peaks and north of Market its not really the threat they are claiming. Note who the sponsors are and you get the picture: a seismic retrofit INC money grab, flavored with the fact that those building that would get rebuilt may be able to drop from the rent control ordinance.
It is unfair to burden small property owners with this cost. If the public goods are so compelling, then the public should finance it. Another example of the Baptists and Bootleggers at work; contractors, engineers, lenders, permit expeditors (one of whom became Mayor’s seismic point person), and yes, landlord attorneys, all working with the politicians in the name of “safety.” Who could be against it? And they wonder why rents are so high…
@ RIB Same political and money motivated legislation from the fire departments and sprinkler installers to require sprinklers in all residential buildings. It makes no sense from either a public safetly or financial perspective. It is just a scam to enrich their own pockets.