Wood-Frame Soft-Story Structures
San Jose
The City of San Jose does not currently mandate the retrofit of wood-frame soft-story buildings; however, the City is working to develop a mandatory soft-story retrofit program.
Scope
The City of San Jose has published the following definition of soft story buildings that would fall under the scope of the proposed ordinance under development:
- Wood-frame buildings with at least three residential units
- Built before 1990
- May have crawl spaces lacking any earthquake retrofit
- May have levels with large openings used for parking, storage, etc.
Development Timeline
The City of San Jose has published the following proposed timeline for mandatory soft story retrofit ordinance development.
| Timeframe | action |
|---|---|
| June 2023 | Staff present an overview of the program concepts and process to the Housing & Community Development Commission. |
| July 2023-Jan 2024 | City conducts outreach with property owner, tenant, and housing groups. |
| February 2024 | Housing & Community Development Commission - Hearing on Draft Ordinance |
| march 25, 2024 | Presentation to Community & Economic Development Committee |
| may 21, 2024 | City Council Public Hearing |
CONTACTS
Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.Phone: (510) 428-2907
E-mail: seismicordinances@wje.com
City of San Jose Building Division
200 E. Santa Clara St., San Jose, CA, 95113
Phone: (408) 535-3598
Email: softstoryretrofit@sanjoseca.gov
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