A “soft story” or “wood-frame target story” (WFTS) building, refers to a type of construction that is particularly vulnerable to earthquake damage because one story is weaker than the story above it.  These buildings often shift sideways during earthquakes and can even lean so much that they collapse.  The technical definitions for wood-frame target story are below:

• Target story.  Either (1) a basement story or underfloor area that extends above grade at any point or (2) any story above grade, where the wall configuration of such basement, underfloor area, or story is substantially more vulnerable to earthquake damage than the wall configuration of the story above; except that a story is not a target story if it is the topmost story or if the difference in vulnerability is primarily due to the story above being a penthouse or an attic with a pitched roof.
• Wood-frame target story.  A target story in which a significant portion of lateral or torsional story strength or story stiffness is provided by wood-frame walls.

Only design professionals such as a licensed architect or engineer can determine whether an individual building is a WFTS. The ordinance requires screening of all multifamily buildings that may be WFTS and a retrofit of all buildings that are determined to be WFTS.

 The images below show some examples to illustrate the concept.

Example 1: Not WFTS. The wall configuration is essentially identical in both stories, and there is no crawl space or underfloor area. 

Example 2: WFTS. The wall construction in the first story is different than the construction of the second story.  Most of the front face wall is missing with just a few posts between the parking spaces. 

Example 3: Not WFTS. This building has a similar configuration to example 2. However, the walls are constructed of concrete masonry units, not wood. Therefore this is not a wood-frame target story. 

Example 4: WFTS. This is an example of a building with a crawl space beneath  the first floor with wood-frame cripple walls.

Example 5: WFTS. This building has an open crawlspace in the downhill area on the bottom left of the photo. Assuming the crawlspace walls are wood, it is a WFTS.

The primary purpose of Screening is to determine whether each building is subject to the ordinance or exempt, and to set the deadlines by assigning each building to a “compliance tier” (see Tiers and Deadlines below). In addition, the Screening phase will introduce owners to the program and will confirm information the Building Department is using to plan the program’s later phases. Overall, screening is meant to make the later phases of the program easier for all participants.

All buildings that were sent a notice letter must complete and submit the screening form by October 15th, 2024. If you didn't receive a letter but your building has more than 3 dwelling units and was built or permitted before 1981, you must also complete the screening. Please contact us.

Detailed instructions for completing the form can be found here. You can complete the form online here or submit the pdf version of the form by email to softstory@albanyca.org or by mail or drop off to:

Attn: Michelle Plouse, Soft Story Screening

Community Development Department

1000 San Pablo Ave.

Albany, CA 94706

Only buildings that fit the following criteria will need to complete a retrofit:

• Built, permitted, or designed before 1981
• Has 3 or more dwelling units
• Has one or more wood-frame target stories

In most cases, the building owner will need to hire a licensed architect or engineer to determine whether the building has a WFTS and complete the form.  Alternative screening options are available in specific scenarios, detailed in the "Alternative Screening Options" section below.

Option 1: Owner Certified Soft Story. If the owner knows that the building DOES have a wood-frame target story, the owner may complete the screening form and answer "YES" to Section 2, Question 3 (Does the building have a WFTS?) without the help of a design professional.

The building will then be deemed a subject building and will proceed to the retrofit design phase, for which a design professional will always be required. Choose this option only if you are sure that your building has a wood-frame target story.

• Even if an owner avoids the use of a design professional to answer this question, a design professional would be required to answer "Yes" to Section 2, Question 3  (Does the building's wood-frame target story contain one or more legally permitted dwelling units or other spaces with business, mercantile, or assembly occupancy?). A yes response to this question is needed to qualify for the later deadlines of Compliance Tier 3 or 4, as determined in Section 4. To summarize: a building owner can only complete the form without a design professional if they answer "Yes" to Section 2 Question 3 and "No" to Section 2 Question 6.

• Even if a design professional is not strictly required, hiring one to complete the Screening Form can offer other advantages to the owner of a subject building. Hiring a design professional for Screening can provide an opportunity to discuss the requirements of the Program with a knowledgeable professional for relatively low cost and with no commitment. If the design professional is also interested in providing services for the design phase of the program, the Screening process can also provide an opportunity to meet and discuss the project at the site, again for relatively low cost and commitment.

Option 2: Screening By The Building Department. If the building has a target story but also has full-height concrete or masonry walls  throughout that story (either cast concrete, concrete masonry units,  or clay bricks), it might be exempt from retrofit. Normally this determination requires the input of a design professional hired at the owner’s expense. To spare the owner this cost, the Department is offering to complete the Screening for buildings that appear to be exempt due to the presence of concrete or masonry walls, with no fee. In order to be eligible for this option, the first floor of your building must have full height walls that are clearly constructed of concrete or masonry. See the example photos below to determine if your building is eligible.  

The process for this option is as follows:

• Submit information to the Department.

• Do not submit a completed Screening Form.

• Instead, submit photos of the walls believed to be full-height concrete or masonry in the target story (usually the first story). Provide a photo of each wall showing the full height of the wall. Submit them as email attachments to softstory@albanyca.org with the building address and “target story walls” in the email subject line.

• Communicate Building Department staff to:

• As needed, explain the photographs or provide more photos.

• Schedule a timely in-person 30-minute site visit by Department staff.

• Prepare the property for the site visit:
• Ensure that walls throughout the target story are accessible for reasonably unobstructed viewing from both the interior and exterior. This might require temporary moving of stored items, parked cars, etc.
• Ensure access to all rooms and spaces in the target story, including crawl spaces and occupied units (residential or non-residential).
• Provide proper notice to tenants.

• Participate in person in the site visit by Department staff, or provide an agent or representative to do so, in order to:
• Provide access to the site and all portions of the building and grounds.
• As needed, answer questions about the building.
• Sign the Screening Form.

Examples

Concrete Masonry Unit Wall

The area inside the yellow box below is an example of a concrete masonry unit (CMU) wall.  The blue blocks are concrete masonry units. The entire height of the wall for this story is made of CMU. If all of the walls in this story are also CMU, the building would be eligible for screening by the department.

This building is another example of a target story with CMU walls.  If the back wall is also CMU, this building would be eligible for screening by the department.

Once a building is identified as a WFTS, it will be placed into a compliance tier for completion of the retrofit. There are 4 tiers, based on the number of dwelling units in the building and whether there is a dwelling unit or other occupancy unit in the target story.  The descriptions and deadlines for each tier are listed below.

Note: Dwelling units provide complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation.  

Wood-Frame Target Story Seismic Retrofit Program Deadlines

Generally retrofits can be completed either by installing wood sheathing to existing stud walls or by installing a steel frame on the weak wall of the soft story. See the images below for examples.  

The retrofit must be completed by a licensed professional and comply with one of the three following standards
1. Chapter A4 of the latest edition of the California Existing Building Code
2. . The latest edition of Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of Existing Buildings [ASCE/SEI 41] with a performance objective of Structural Life Safety with the BSE-1E hazard or Structural Collapse Prevention with the BSE-2E hazard
3. For subject buildings qualified as historic, alternate building regulations of the 2022 California Historical Building Code.

Your licensed professional will understand the details of these standards and will be required to submit plans to the building department to determine compliance during the permitting process.
In the coming months, the building department will publish retrofit guides designed for building owners to explain the retrofit process in layman’s terms and help you understand the work that needs to be done on your building.

 Wood sheathing added to existing walls

Steel Frame

The City is not allowed to recommend specific architects, engineers, or contractors. However, several lists of licensed professionals working in the area are copied below for your convenience: 

SEAONC Structural Engineer Referral List - https://www.seaonc.org/page/referrallist

AIA East Bay - https://aiaeb.org/find-an-architect/

AIA SF Search - https://www.aiasf.org/page/FindanArchitect

Engineers who attended the Soft-Story Summit 2017

Contractors State License Board - http://www.cslb.ca.gov

For some condo buildings, City staff did not have a contact for a building manager or HOA, so notification letters were sent to all building owners. However, only one screening form is required for each building. For condo building, the owners will need to designate someone to complete the screening. This will likely be a building manager or HOA official.