After Napa Quake, Thousands of California Buildings Still Without Seismic Retrofit

By Jeremy Raff and Tara Siler

Napa’s historic buildings were supposed to have been retrofitted by 2009. So why did Sunday’s quake make heaps of brick and mortar of those charming downtown facades?

Since the 1980s, most of the historic buildings on the state’s retrofit list have been updated. Still, “we have seven to eight thousand buildings to go,” said Emir Macari, a member of the California Seismic Safety Commission and professor of seismic engineering at Cal State Sacramento. “The enforcement is the part that has been lacking.”

Six of Napa’s 18 historic buildings have not been retrofitted; three have no timeline for completion.

But reinforcing them is not a silver bullet. “Retrofitting is actually meant to prevent the loss of life inside the structure, not to prevent [all] damage,” said Macari. “The pictures we’ve seen are what we can expect in this magnitude earthquake. Perhaps those that were not retrofitted are the ones that are seeing more casualties.”

Since the financial crisis, some local governments have backed off building owners for fear they would rather move their businesses elsewhere than invest in retrofitting. Brian Silver, owner of the three historic buildings without retrofit plans, told the L.A. Times he hasn’t been able to afford the $500,000 cost.

And even with updates, there are no guarantees. The three-story Alexandria Square building at Second and Brown streets had been retrofitted in 2004. Early Sunday morning, parts of the top floor fell to the sidewalk below, where the Carpe Diem Wine Bar has outdoor seating.

Retrofitting the rest of the buildings on the state’s list would cost more than $3 billion, said Macari. “It is a financial issue. We hope the state can create perhaps some incentives for these owners to begin to retrofit. Because earthquakes, damage and the loss of life will occur if we don’t undergo all the retrofits that are mandated at this point.”