Department of Building Inspection Annual Report Fiscal Year 2016-2017 | Page 17

Feature
Stories
Mandatory Soft Story Program Outreach
Established in 2013, the innovative Mandatory Soft Story Program is a community-based effort led by DBI to retrofit
older, wood-framed, multi-family buildings with a soft-story condition. These buildings are susceptible to strong
damage during an earthquake and are at risk of collapse. The 4,918 buildings encompassed by the program house
115,000 residents citywide.
Properties identified under the program are divided into four tiers. Outreach for 2016-17 focused on the nearly 3,500
buildings classified as Tier 3—three-story buildings with five to 15 units. Property owners were required to submit
permit applications by September 15, 2017. By the end of the deadline date, 86 percent of property owners had
complied.
In the coming years, DBI will be working with property owners to conduct final inspections for completion of work
and issuance of a Certificate of Final Completion.
Compliance Tier Submittal of Permit
Application Completion of Work and
Issuance of Certificate of
Final Completion
1 – Buildings containing
educational, assembly, or
residential care facility uses September 15, 2015 September 15, 2017
2 – Buildings with 15 or more
dwelling units September 15, 2016 September 15, 2018
3 – Three-story buildings with
five to 15 units September 15, 2017 September 15, 2019
4 – Buildings with ground floor
commercial uses or located in
mapped liquefaction zones September 15, 2018 September 15, 2020
Department of Building Inspection, Fiscal Year 2016-2017 Annual Report
17