Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Seismic Resilience topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
CAPS update: consultants to deliver retrofit guidance and policy options by mid-2010
Summary
Applied Technology Council told the Building Inspection Commission that updates to San Francisco's earthquake-loss modeling and retrofit guidance are underway, with draft policy recommendations due by spring and final recommendations by mid-2010; stakeholders urged prioritization, incentives and attention to displaced tenants.
The Applied Technology Council's project manager delivered an update on the Community Action Plan for Seismic Safety (CAPS), reporting that the team has resurrected and improved the seismic-loss modeling and will emphasize community impacts—damaged housing counts, repair timelines and neighborhood recovery—rather than only citywide dollar losses.
CAPS staff laid out draft and review milestones: a revised baseline loss report will reach the advisory committee in January, retrofit and repair guidelines drafts will be available in March, and policy-recommendation drafts will follow by May with completion by mid-June. The team is also pursuing FEMA-funded work on cost-effective retrofits for soft-story buildings to reduce collapse risk while limiting cost and disruption.
Commissioners and multiple public commenters (small-property-owner groups, architects and tenant representatives) raised concerns about the likely cost of retrofits ($60,000'$130,000 ranges cited in earlier work), relocation and temporary displacement costs, prioritization of high-risk neighborhoods (landfill areas, Mission, Western Addition) and program incentives (loans, planning concessions). CAPS staff emphasized outreach and invited participation in advisory meetings; commissioners emphasized the need to design incentives and financing tools to avoid undue burden on small landlords and tenants and to maximize community resilience.
CAPS will provide data intended to let policymakers assess whether a mandatory retrofit program is feasible, where to phase work, and what incentives or loan products might reduce displacement and accelerate recovery.
