Soft Story Model Ordinance & Handbook

A large, soft-story apartment building with parking garage spaces on the first floor.

This collection of resources provides information gathered from local experience and recommended practices for how to understand the problem that soft story buildings pose for jurisdictions and the region. It advises how to develop programs to reduce the earthquake risks of existing soft story buildings and to increase the resilience of the Bay Area’s housing.

While the information presented is based on extensive earthquake engineering knowledge, this information is intended to be used by a non-technical audience, including jurisdiction staff and elected officials, to help guide policy development, adoption and implementation of retrofit for this type of common, fragile housing.

The program guide and model ordinance were created by the ABAG in 2016 and 2017 respectively.

Soft Story Program Handbook

The document is an aid to city and county governments interested in addressing soft story structures. It is organized into four sections:

  • Fragile Apartment Buildings: The Soft Story Problem
  • Preparing a Retrofit Program
  • Developing Retrofit Policy and Program Elements
  • Implementing a Retrofit Program
View the handbook.
Soft Story Model Ordinance

This report presents model ordinance provisions for a range of feasible soft story mitigation programs, consistent with California law and coordinated with the 2016 California Existing Building Code. The report includes background and commentary, as well as instructions for customizing the model provisions for a specific jurisdiction and notes on program implementation.

View the model ordinance.
Bay Area Jurisdiction Soft Story Policies & Programs

ABAG tracks when jurisdictions in the Bay Area adopt a soft story ordinance. This resource organizes the known policies in a dozen jurisdictions.

See the policies and programs.
Guidance & Recommendations for the Seismic Evaluation & Retrofit of Multi-Unit Wood-Frame Buildings with Weak First Stories

This guide advances the understanding of the behavior of soft-, weak- or open-front (SWOF) buildings and to encourage improved practice in the design of retrofits.
Update

Topics

Program

Type

Codes & Standards, Model Ordinance, Template

Related:

Housing, Resilience, Hazard, Earthquake, Seismic, Policy, Ordinance, Model, Mitigation, Soft Story, Retrofit, Building
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Soft Story Retrofit Program Development Guide

This guide provides information gathered from local experience and recommended practices for how to understand the problem that soft story buildings pose for jurisdictions and the region.
Download the Soft Story Retrofit Program Guide.