State earthquake retrofit grants available

BERKELEY >> Homeowners in more than four dozen communities statewide can apply for grants of up to $3,000 for seismic retrofits of older houses, but not for long — the deadline is Feb. 23.

The grants are being offered by Earthquake Brace + Bolt, part of the California Residential Mitigation Program, a joint powers authority created in 2011 by the California Earthquake Authority and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to help residents strengthen the foundation of their homes against damage from earthquakes.

“The natural disasters of 2017 remind us of the need to be prepared for the major earthquakes that are inevitable in California,” state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said in a news release Tuesday. “Californians can protect their families by strengthening older homes, which are particularly vulnerable to earthquake damage, and by making sure they have the financial strength to rebuild with earthquake insurance.”

Homes with qualifying retrofits are eligible for discounts of up to 20 percent on California Earthquake Authority insurance premiums, according to the release, which also notes that more than 1.2 million houses in highhazard areas of California are particularly vulnerable to earthquakes by virtue of when and how they were constructed: typically before 1979, with a wood frame on a raised foundation, and with a cripple wall in the crawlspace under the house.

The CEA is providing $6 million to fund the grants this year, and has made 17 additional communities in high-hazard areas eligible, bringing the total to 51 statewide.

In the Bay Area, the EBB program will be available homes in select ZIP codes in the following communities:

Albany, Berkeley, Burlingame, Colma, Daly City, El Cerrito, Emeryville, Hayward, Hillsborough, Los Gatos, Millbrae, Napa, Oakland, Piedmont, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Francisco, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, San Mateo and Woodside.

Besides offering grants, EBB works with local building departments on the permitting process for retrofit projects and on developing the roster of contractors trained to do them in compliance with codes. The agency listed almost 900 such contractors in its searchable Contractor Directory as of the end of 2017.