NEWPORT BEACH : 124 Buildings on List for Seismic Work

City officials have completed a preliminary working list of 124 commercial buildings needing seismic improvements in the next four to six years and notified the owners of the requirements.

“I’ve had calls from about 15 people so far,” city building director Ray Schuller said. “Reactions range from irate to short of having a heart attack.”

The move to promote public safety during earthquakes is in response to a 1986 state law requiring cities and counties in areas at risk of earthquakes to identify hazardous buildings, develop a program to improve them and report to the Seismic Safety Committee in Sacramento by Jan. 1, 1990.

Walt Boyce, a Corona del Mar building owner who received a notice, said the city is making every effort to work with people to determine whether buildings are reinforced.

Boyce said he is “relatively sure” that his building is already reinforced with steel but wants to be absolutely sure.

“In the case of most, the initial reaction will be, ‘Oh, my gosh, all this money,’ ” Boyce said. “But then they’ll sit down and assess it and say, ‘I don’t want anyone hurt and I don’t want to lose my investment.’ ”

Newport Beach is among 27 Orange County cities required to file by the deadline, but only five other cities have as yet sent in their lists, safety committee information officer Ed Hensley said this week.

To date, Newport Beach has the largest number of unsafe buildings reported, according to committee data. Huntington Beach is second with 52 buildings. Placentia, Anaheim, Santa Ana and Brea total 79.

The difference in numbers of buildings reported can be attributed to city age and whether or not there has been an active redevelopment agency in place, city officials said.

In Newport Beach, which has no redevelopment agency, buildings requiring improvements are unreinforced masonry concrete structures built before 1936 and buildings with unreinforced walls, foundations or other structural elements.

Schuller said most of the unsafe buildings are small shops, restaurants and office buildings around the Newport and Balboa piers. Others are in West Newport and along Coast Highway in Corona del Mar, he said.

Buildings on the list are classified according to three degrees of risk.

High-hazard buildings, of which there are about 40, must be renovated or demolished by Jan. 1, 1994. Medium- and low-hazard buildings must be dealt with by 1995 and 1996, respectively.

While Schuller says the repairs are necessary, he said he expects more protests from owners and tenants.

“The real problem is that people have to move (during the work) and then there’s a loss of business,” he said. “I had thought of the economic impact, but it’s one thing to send a notice and something else to hear from a little old lady whose building has been her sole source of income for years.”

Contractors say costs for seismic improvements range from $5 per square foot to more than $100 per square foot, depending on the condition of the building.

Still, the bottom line is safety, city officials said.

Last year’s earthquake on the Newport-Inglewood fault caused broken windows, bricks to fall and walls to crack, Schuller said. But that earthquake measured only 4.6 and was one short jolt, he said.

“In a more serious quake, these buildings will come down,” he said. “I’m interested in the safety of people as well as the safety of buildings. I don’t want someone to get killed.”