Title
First Reading of an Ordinance of the City of San Leandro City Council Amending San Leandro Municipal Code Title 7 (Maps, Buildings, and Subdivisions) by Adding Article 16 (Earthquake Hazard Reduction in Existing Soft-Story Residential Buildings) to Chapter 7-5 (Building Code)
Staffreport
COUNCIL PRIORITY
• Housing and Homelessness
• Sustainability and Resiliency
SUMMARY
The City of San Leandro is located within the active Hayward Fault seismic zone and contains 368 identified soft-story buildings which are primarily residential. Soft-story buildings contain weak or open front ground floor stories that are recognized by engineers, and other seismic safety experts, as having potential for sustaining serious damage including collapse, in the event of a strong earthquake. The creation of a Soft Story Ordinance is a City Council priority. A new section of the Municipal Code is presented for first reading by adding a new Article 16 (Earthquake Hazard Reduction in Existing Soft-Story Residential Buildings) to Chapter 7-5 (Building Code) in the Municipal Code Title 7 (Maps, Buildings, and Subdivisions). The intent of the new ordinance is to implement a mandatory seismic hazard identification and mitigation program to investigate and correct the potential seismic hazards of certain residential and commercial buildings in a timely manner.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce an Ordinance amending the Municipal Code, as shown in Attachment A, Exhibit A.
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
The California Health and Safety Code expressly authorizes local jurisdictions to adopt retrofit standards for soft-story residential buildings. Buildings with soft, weak or open front ground floor stories are recognized by engineers, and other seismic safety experts, as having potential for sustaining serious damage including collapse, in the event of strong earthquakes. Potential consequences of soft story building collapses include injuries and fatalities, loss of housing, economic repercussions and property damage (e.g., buildings, vehicles).
In 2007, the City Building and Safety Division prepared an extensive soft story building survey and inventory identifying 368 buildings comprised of over 4,000 total residential buildings as potentially hazardous soft-story residential buildings. There were also a small number of commercial buildings identified as potentially soft story structures, but the large majority of buildings surveyed were residential. Loss of even a small portion of these units following an earthquake would significantly impact the San Leandro housing stock.
Adopting the nationally recognized model code for soft story retrofit provides building owners and engineers a basis to analyze and propose retrofit options. This code is not intended to provide levels of building safety equal to current code, rather to identify and provide for improving the structure’s more vulnerable portions, which can be expected to substantially reduce the likelihood of excessive building drift or collapse and substantially lessen the loss of housing and human life.
In 2021, the City Council made development of a Soft Story Ordinance a priority by allocating federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant funds to this project. In Summer 2023, the City hired an experienced consulting firm, CSG Consultants, to develop and help implement a soft story retrofit ordinance.
CSG evaluated three soft story programs in the following Alameda County cities: Alameda, Hayward, and Oakland. All three cities had mandatory seismic analysis/screening and only Oakland had a mandatory retrofit requirement. Alameda’s ordinance had the highest rate of success with 63% of its identified soft story building’s retrofitted, while Oakland had a 28% success rate and Hayward a 3% success rate. See Attachment B for comparison of the three cities. San Leandro is modeling its ordinance on City of Alameda’s existing ordinance. The cost to retrofit a building for property owners averages between $5,100 to $8,700 per dwelling unit (Source: Alameda, Hayward, and Oakland building permit records for 2018-2022).
Key components of the proposed Soft Story Ordinance include:
• Covers or makes subject to this Ordinance buildings with five (5) or more housing units that were permitted for construction before January 1,1985. Seismic related building code standards improved after 1985.
• Establishes an Inventory of Potentially Hazardous Soft-Story Buildings. As noted above, the City established this inventory in 2007 for 368 primarily residential buildings, and it is still relevant today.
• Adopts the Current Nationally Recognized Model Code for Soft-Story Retrofit. Chapter A4 of the 2022 California Existing Building Code, entitled “Earthquake Risk Reduction in Existing Wood-Frame Residential Buildings with Soft, Weak, or Open-Front Walls Is the current model code for soft-story retrofit.
• Requires Owners of Potentially Hazardous Soft-Story Buildings to Perform an Analysis of Structural Seismic Adequacy. Property owners of potentially hazardous soft-story buildings will be required, within 18 months, to submit a detailed seismic engineering evaluation report prepared by a qualified California licensed structural or civil engineer that 1) analyzes the structural ability of the building to resist the seismic effects of earthquakes and the extent to which the building meets the standards for structural seismic adequacy, 2) identifies any hazardous exterior design elements, and 3) describes the elements of work needed to remedy the identified weaknesses.
• Requires Owners of Potentially Hazardous Soft-Story Buildings to Install Earthquake-Actuated Gas Shut Off Valves. Within 60 days, the property owner must install an earthquake-actuated gas shut off valve.
• Requires Owners of Potentially Hazardous Soft-Story Buildings to Notify Building Tenants in Writing and by Placing a Warning Sign in the Building. Within 18 months the property owner must notify each tenant in writing and post a warning sign in the building lobby (or visible common area) clearly warning that the building may not be safe to be inside or near in a major earthquake.
• Establishes Fees and Financial Incentives
a) The cost to a property owner for an engineering seismic and structural report is about $3,000 to $7,000 depending on the building size. Similar to the City of Alameda, staff recommends establishing an Engineering Report Review Fee for City permit staff to review the technical engineering seismic report from the property owner. Staff estimates this fee is estimated initially to be about $625 depending on the size or number of units in the soft story building based on 3 hours minimum review time for permit staff. This fee will be identified in the City’s annual Master Fee Schedule reviewed and approved by City Council resolution.
b) To incentivize soft story building owners to expeditiously transition from conducting an engineering report to obtaining building permits and completing the retrofit and seismic hazard mitigation work, the Ordinance contains the financial incentives. All building permit plan review and inspection fees shall be reduced by the Chief Building Official as follows: 100% for qualifying reports submitted within six (6) months of the date of service of the notice of inclusion on the Inventory, 50% for qualifying reports submitted within twelve (12) months of the date of service of the notice of inclusion on the Inventory, and 25% for qualifying reports submitted within eighteen(18) months of the date of service of the notice of inclusion on the Inventory of Potentially Hazardous Soft-Story Buildings.
• Establishes Appeal Process. Any property owner who receives a notice that their building is on the Inventory of Potentially Hazardous Soft Story Buildings may appeal to the Building Official within 60 days from the date of the service of the Inventory notice. Within 10 days of the Building Official’s final determination, the property owner may appeal to the Board of Appeals, which was created under Section 113 of the San Leandro Building Code and hears and decides appeals or decisions or determinations by the Building Official.
• Allows Removal of Buildings from the Inventory. A building shall be removed from the inventory under the following circumstances:
a) A determination by the Building Official that the building does not contain a Weak, Soft, or Open Front Story and meets the applicable standards; or
b) The satisfactory completion of a seismic retrofit and appropriate inspections bringing the Soft, Weak, or Open Front Story of the building up to the requirements of the applicable standards of Appendix Chapter A4 of the 2022 CEBC; or
c) A determination by the Building Official or a decision on appeal that the building is not a building with Soft, Weak, Or Open Front Stories; or
d) Lawful demolition of the building.
Assuming the Ordinance is approved and takes effect around mid-January 2025, Building Division staff will prepare and post public information about it on the City webpage and will send a courtesy notice to the 368 properties preparing the owners for the official notice (that their property is on the City soft story inventory list and they will need to comply with the new ordinance) that will be mailed to them in Spring/early Summer 2025.
Committee Review and Actions
• January 25, 2023 - City Council Rules Committee reviewed a process to prepare a draft Soft Story Retrofit Ordinance and provided staff direction to proceed.
• July 24, 2024 - Rules Committee reviewed draft Soft Story Retrofit Ordinance and recommended staff prepare and present the proposed ordinance to City Council before the end of the year.
Applicable General Plan Policies
• Action 2.4 from the 2023-2031 Housing Element Update: Explore establishment of a Soft Story Program to address earthquake preparedness.
Environmental Review
The passage of this ordinance is not a project according to the definitions in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA ) and, therefore, is not subject to the provisions requiring environmental review. Therefore, the proposed action is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in that it is not a Project that has the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment under CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3).
Summary of Public Outreach Efforts
Staff conducted two community meetings in Summer 2024. The June 25 meeting was online via Zoom and the June 27 meeting was in person at the Main Library. Owners of potentially hazardous soft-story buildings were invited to both. Staff developed a public outreach list of over 1,300 property owners of apartments, condominium units and townhomes. This list includes the 368 potential soft story property owners in the 2007 City inventory. The public outreach list also includes housing provider associations (i.e.,BayEast Association of Realtors, East Bay Rental Housing Association, Rental Housing Association of Southern Alameda County) and the Chamber of Commerce.
Legal Analysis
The City Attorney’s Office reviewed and drafted the proposed ordinance and has reviewed and approved the staff report.
Financial Impacts
There are no anticipated impacts on the General Fund. Building and Safety Division anticipates full or substantial cost recovery. To incentivize property owners to obtain permits and complete soft story retrofit within 18 months, tiered discount Building plan review and inspection fees have been established under this Ordinance, which staff estimates will have de minimis impact on the City and Building Division budgets. The new Engineer Report Review fee may generate modest revenue to the City. Minimal impacts on Building permit and inspection staffing as the review, permitting and inspection process will fall under existing procedures.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Ordinance Amending the San Leandro Municipal Code
Exhibit A: Amended Municipal Code (clean version)
Attachment B: Comparative Summary of Alameda, Hayward and Oakland Soft Story Ordinances
Attachment C: Soft Story Retrofit Ordinance Powerpoint
PREPARED BY: Michael Jeffery, Chief Building Official, Building & Safety Division, Community Development Department.