EARTHQUAKE BOLT + BRACE PROGRAM

Over two years ago I was approached to participate in the California Earthquake Bolt and Brace Pilot Program. The first job was quite different than the experience we have today. California Earthquake Authority had contracted with a special inspection firm from Los Angeles that flew up to Oakland in order to make the special inspections along with the city inspections. After the process it was a challenge to get all the paper work to the website because the owner did not know how to scan and had to retake several pictures in order to get clear enough pictures for them.

After about 3 months of back and forth they finally worked out the process and my client was mailed her grant. The CEA had contacted me on several different occasions so I agreed to go to Sacramento and meet with the department heads and talk them through several of the challenges of our local building departments and the seismic construction process.

 From that meeting we found several areas that could be improved. Allowing the contractors to upload the pictures and documents was one major area of many they implemented. The process today is pretty straight forward the most difficult challenge is knowing and understanding how the state requirements need to be satisfied in each individual city and how to navigate through all of their endless differences.

The program is a great motivation for people old and young and have motivated and older generation of people to call me and have their houses retrofitted in order to make their homes safer.