ORANGE : Seismic Work OKd for Historic District
The City Council this week unanimously approved a $1.7-million seismic retrofitting project to upgrade about 55 buildings in its historic downtown district.
Work on the unreinforced masonry buildings may begin as soon as August, city officials said at Tuesday’s council meeting. The project will take about three years to complete.
The council also authorized paying a consultant up to $30,000 to review the expense of retrofitting the buildings.
A city advisory committee had complained that original cost figures, from a number of estimators, were uneven.
The advisory committee, made up of property owners and city officials, wants to make sure cost estimates are fair because buildings that need the most work will receive the mostmoney.
Obtaining the new estimates will delay the project’s start by about three months, said city officials.
“It will take a little extra time,” said Jack McGee with the Community Development Department. “But I think it’s worth it to gain the confidence of the community.”
Plans for the project began five years ago when the state enacted legislation requiring seismic retrofitting in designated areas. The project is funded by city redevelopment money, which is expected to cover about two-thirds of the cost to fully improve the unreinforced buildings.
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