Torrance OKs Aid to Upgrade Buildings to Meet Quake Codes

The Torrance City Council has approved the final phase of a plan to reinforce masonry buildings that could suffer major damage in an earthquake.

The council last week unanimously approved creation of a special assessment district in the old downtown that will issue $5 million in taxable bonds to pay for the work.

The creation of an assessment district provides financing for building owners who are required to meet the standards of an earthquake safety ordinance adopted by the city in December.

The ordinance requires the upgrading of all buildings built before 1933. It won approval after merchants in the old downtown area endorsed it and a companion financing program that city officials believe is the first of its kind in the state.

Dangerous Buildings Identified

Ralph Grippo, director of the Torrance Building and Safety Division, said 50 apartment and commercial buildings in the old downtown have been identified as potentially dangerous and could suffer severe damage in a major earthquake. An estimated 200 to 300 people occupy the brick and wood buildings during the day and as many as 500 people live in them at night, Grippo said.

All of the buildings, built before tougher building standards were adopted in 1933, qualify for the assessment district. Under the ordinance, they must be upgraded to meet earthquake safety codes within four years or be razed, Grippo said.

“It is a good program because buildings that would otherwise be non-functional would be made functional,” said Mike Bihn, principal planner and head of the Torrance Redevelopment Department.

Many of the older buildings in old downtown have a historical significance and form the central core of the city, Bihn said. “They have a small-town feel there,” he said.

The difficulty in upgrading these older buildings, however, has always been the cost, Grippo said. Bank loans to renovate the older buildings are difficult to get, he said.

Renovation will involve bolting exterior walls to the floor and roof and installing interior bracing. The work could cost as much as $10 a square foot, he said.

Under the assessment district, every building owner in the area is eligible for aid, and the interest rate is lower than normal, Grippo said. Businesses that have already made improvements through bank loans qualify for reimbursement from the program, he said.

Two Payments a Year

Grippo said building owners must make two payments a year for 12 years on their loan.

Some merchants still may decide to raze older buildings and rebuild, Bihn said, “but I don’t think you’ll see that on a wholesale basis.”

Joel McCloud, president of the Downtown Torrance Assn., said most downtown merchants are receptive to the program. McCloud, who is co-owner of a two-story building that needs upgrading, said he is considering acquiring funds from the program.

“This is a very, very simple program,” McCloud said. “All the people have to do is sign up and get three bids (from contractors).”

Two businesses, First Interstate Bank and the Waterman Palms Restaurant, have already applied for the program, Grippo said. Twenty-five businesses have received permits to begin renovation and 10 more are in the process of acquiring the permits, he said.