DR-4407-CA Public Notice 011

INITIAL PUBLIC NOTICE: Seismic Retrofit Funding Project, City of Santa Monica | HMGP-4407-045-063

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) proposes to provide federal financial assistance under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to the City of Santa Monica to implement the Seismic Retrofit Funding Project, which would include the retrofit of approximately 240 residential buildings. The project would address seismic vulnerabilities and related structural weaknesses associated with “soft story” residential buildings and those supported by unreinforced masonry, non-ductile concrete, or older steel moment frames within the City. Some of the buildings that would be retrofitted through this grant may be located within a floodplain. Pursuant to Executive Order 11988 (Floodplain Management) and FEMA’s implementing regulations at Title 44 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 9, FEMA hereby provides interested parties with a notice of its intent to carry out actions in a floodplain.

The structural retrofit and upgrade of buildings targeted under the project could include the alteration, repair, replacement, or addition of structural elements and their connections along the weakened open wall lines in soft, weak, or open-front wood structures or locations of major deficiencies in non-ductile concrete structures and older steel moment frame structures to meet strength and stiffness conformance requirements. Typical retrofit designs could include installation of special, intermediate, or ordinary steel moment frames; light-frame shear walls; special or ordinary cantilever column systems; new concrete walls; masonry walls; steel braced frames; or a combination of the above. The project engineer would evaluate potential retrofit methods with the property owner and determine the best approach for mitigating vulnerabilities. Staging and access for retrofit activities would occur on the street adjacent to the building or in the building parking garage. Retrofits would not require land acquisition or right-of-way or access easements.

Additional information about FEMA’s proposed action and maps showing the potential impacts on floodplains may be obtained by writing the FEMA Region IX Environmental Officer at FEMA, 1111 Broadway, Suite 1200, Oakland, California 94607 or fema-rix-ehp-documents@fema.dhs.gov. All requests should be received within 15 days after publication of this notice.