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Commission approves technical tweaks to soft‑story retrofit ordinance; DBI readies outreach and financing options
Summary
The commission unanimously approved minor technical changes to the mandatory soft‑story retrofit ordinance, aligning five structural standards and adding board of examiners membership rules and disclosure questions to the 3R report. DBI plans to mail ~6,000 owner notices and to host financing and technical workshops starting in September and October.
The Building Inspection Commission unanimously approved minor code amendments on Aug. 21 that clarify evaluation and retrofit criteria for the city—s mandatory soft‑story seismic retrofit program. Patrick Godolini, director of earthquake safety in the City Administrator—s office, said the revisions bring five different structural standards into technical alignment and add procedural language for the Board of Examiners when soft‑story cases are referred for review.
Key changes approved include: allowing five structural standards (benchmarked by the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California) to be used so each yields equivalent retrofit performance; requiring plans to call out any existing walls used in calculations; and adding three seismic improvement members to Board of Examiners panels in rare cases (one licensed architect/engineer who is a property owner, one who is a tenant, and one seismic retrofit expert).
DBI also outlined a public outreach and implementation plan. The department plans to mail approximately 6,000 owner notices early next month with a one‑page screening form (completable by a licensed architect or engineer) and a detailed instructions packet. A financing workshop for affected owners is set for Oct. 23 at Fort Mason, and the city—s green finance program is being amended to issue loans for mandatory and voluntary seismic upgrades. Staff emphasized that rent‑board pass‑through rules will remain in effect and that Supervisor Chu is advancing hardship legislation to streamline protections for means‑tested tenants.
DBI said the 6,000‑property list will be published online and updated twice weekly as properties progress through screening, opt‑outs, permit submission and final sign‑off. The commission was told the outreach and training timeline is designed so that technical questions and financing options are available before owners are required to secure permits.
What happens next: Notices will be mailed, DBI will run workshops and webinars, and the commission expects the Board of Supervisors to consider related implementing legislation in the coming month.
