5-Ton Air Conditioner Blamed in Roof Collapse

A 5-ton air-conditioning unit placed atop an Anaheim furniture store without the required city permit may have caused the store’s roof to collapse, a city building inspector said Thursday.

In addition to the air conditioner violation, the roof itself lacked necessary permits, according to Wayne West, the city official who inspected the damage at the East-West shopping center in the 2900 block of West Ball Road.

The falling roof devastated the East-West Furniture store’s inventory Wednesday night and temporarily closed two of the eight small businesses in the Asian-style shopping center.

No Permits for Roofing

“I think everyone is going to be hurt,” said Don Welch, owner of Chiyo’s Needlecraft, three shops away from the furniture store where the roof started to cave in around 6 p.m.

The collapse was probably caused by the weight of the air conditioner combined with several layers of roofing that were installed without city permits, according to West, a building inspector.

“The constant dead load on the roof was just too much for it,” he said.

Responsibility for obtaining the permits lies with the property owner, West said. The owner, Jeff Gradow, will not be fined by the city. Instead, West said, an independent engineering firm will be called in to make recommendations that Gradow must follow.

“The owner has been penalized enough at this point,” West said.

Gradow, 62, a Los Angeles businessman, said he bought the property about 18 months ago. Wednesday he talked to the business owners and surveyed the cracked and bulging walls of the furniture store.

“They are all talking to their insurance companies,” he said. “Hopefully, no one will be the loser (but) I may be the loser.”

Gradow could not be reached for further comment after the inspector’s preliminary report.

West was unable to put a dollar estimate on the damage. He said the furniture store was built during the 1960s when less stringent building regulations were in effect. He said the furniture store will probably have to be demolished.

“It’s major,” said David S. Tamura as he looked over damage to the high-dollar Oriental furniture store his father has operated for 21 years. “It’s more than I expected. I thought it was an isolated spot.”

Business owners said most of their customers go to a nearby bank and then stop by the shopping center, which has a small garden and running, man-made creek, to visit several shops.

‘What Can You Do?’

“When one (store) closes, everyone hurts,” said Akiko Michiuye, who owns Nippon Foods with her husband, James.

Michiuye’s market was damaged when a common wall with the furniture store buckled, apparently under the weight of the collapsing roof. The roof of the larger furniture store appeared higher, and unconnected with that of others in the storefront. On the market’s other side, a beauty salon was undamaged, but remained closed Thursday pending structural inspections.

Some of the shop owners gathered at Chiyo’s Needlework on Wednesday afternoon for coffee and doughnuts to discuss their fate.

Akiko Michiuye recalled hearing the roof structure crumble.

“First thing I did was grab the money and the key to the cash register,” she said. “I thought, ‘earthquake.’ ”