Soft Story Retrofit

Retrofitting a Soft Story Building

A soft story collapse, while quite the spectacle to witness, is something that no one wants occurring with their residential or commercial structure given the resultant damage and potential for injury or death. Soft story collapse is a risk in multi-floor buildings in which there is insufficient support on one or more floors, typically as a result of openings being built into the structure for purposes such as open retail spaces or parking lots.

Due to the devastation of the 1994 Northridge earthquake, various city governments have made it mandatory to retrofit these structures within a specified timeframe, or they will be required to be torn down. For example, the City of Los Angeles has mandated that buildings that consist of two or more wood framed stories, built under building code standards enacted prior to January 1st, 1978, which contain open floor spacing similar to ground floor parking, and are not residential buildings with 3 or less units are required to be retrofitted. Consult your local Department of Building and Safety for your municipality's soft story retrofit requirements.

Retrofitting a soft story building is something that requires the participation of highly experienced engineers and contractors, and given the dire consequences of an unprofessional retrofit, city inspections are through and demanding. With our many years of experience working specifically on properties with this issue, dealing with the complexities of a Los Angeles Soft Story retrofit is something we take pride in resolving in an efficient and rapid manner.

As we do with all of our projects, a soft story retrofit requires a custom approach as every structure requiring a soft story retrofit is different. Whether we need to deal with your grade beams, install new steel columns, or replace your shear paneling, rest assured that we will utilize the best methods and materials for your structure in the most cost-effective way possible.

If you are concerned about your structure having a soft story, or if your local government is requiring you to retrofit your building, give us a call for a free inspection.