West Hollywood Non-Ductile Concrete Building Retrofit

The West Hollywood Non-Ductile Concrete Retrofit Ordinance has been adopted to promote public welfare and safety by reducing the risk of death or injury that are presented by the effects of earthquakes on old existing concrete structures. The poor performance of older concrete buildings is attributed to the non-ductile detailing of structural elements that make the building incapable of sustaining gravity loads when the building is subjected to earthquake induced lateral displacements. This ordinance institutes standards to the improvement of structural performance during earthquakes and hopes to reduce potential injury, loss of life or earthquake-related damage.

West Hollywood Non-Ductile Concrete Ordinance

If a building has been designated in need of a non-ductile concrete building retrofit under West Hollywood Ordinance No. 17-1011, the property owner must comply with the ordinance requirements within the following time limits, from the receipt of the Order to Comply:

Phase 1: Engineering report and major deficiency mitigation

• 3 years: Submit engineering report and determine all structural deficiencies
• 5 years: Submit retrofit plans for major deficiency mitigation
• 7 years: Obtain building permit and commence construction
• 10 years: Complete major deficiency mitigation construction

Phase 2: Complete retrofit

• 13 years: Submit retrofit plans
• 15 years: Obtain building permit and commence construction
• 20 years: Complete construction

Phases of Retrofitting

1. Preliminary Building Checklist: The preliminary building checklist identifies the building as a potential non-ductile building and formally confirms whether it is in need of retrofitting
2. Engineering: An extensive and comprehensive engineering process includes material and soil testing, structural analysis, schematic design, and calculation of the actual design for the retrofitting system itself, i.e. what is going to be done. There is a need to explore the seismic load capacity, mapping the reinforcement of the building and what the structural elements of the building are made of (floor system, column system, gravity load and more). After the analysis is complete, it is sent to the local municipality retrofit program for review.
3. Construction: Once the local city approves the analysis, the execution of the actual construction can begin. How long the construction will take depends on a number of factors, including whether the building is vacant or not.