Editorial News Alert: Burbank Moves Forward with Brutally Expensive Mandatory Seismic Retrofit

On Tuesday, September 10^th, the Burbank City Council voted unanimously on establishing a mandatory seismic retrofit requirement for all soft-story buildings (pre-1978 buildings made of wood-frame with parking tucked underneath).  There are at least 675 multifamily properties in Burbank that are identified as soft-story buildings.  The overwhelming majority of them are owned by small, mom-and-pop owners who will likely not be able to afford this new hugely expensive mandate that typically costs tens of thousands of dollars per unit to complete the required retrofitting. 

This new, costly mandate will be a major financial burden for many of Burbank’s independent, mom-and-pop owners and likely force many to leave the rental housing business. So, why does the Burbank City Council believe that it is better to put small owners out of business than to allow them to continue providing affordable rental housing with older properties? 

At the meeting, the Council just gave lip service to being concerned about keeping existing owners in business and their renters housed.  However, the City is providing NO FUNDING to rental housing providers to help cover the costs of this new extremely expensive requirement.  They are also only providing a miniscule pass through of costs to renters that will directly benefit from these required retrofits.  At just $38 per month per unit for a maximum of ten years, the permitted pass-through amounts to a maximum of only $4,560 per unit compared to retrofit costs of $20,000 to $80,000 per unit.  Thus, the pass through amounts to only 9% and 23% of the total cost of the retrofit project. 

The Council purposefully is relying on cost data that is up to 10 years old and prior to COVID-19 and the periods of high inflation we have been experiencing.  As we have seen, costs have dramatically increased for construction materials AND labor over the past several years.  Despite AAGLA’s zealous urging for the Council to get updated figures before issuing this new mandate, the Council blindly steamrolled forward with its demand for a mandatory requirement to be implemented as soon as January 1, 2025.

While City staff openly admitted that there is NO FUNDING from the state or federal government to assist multifamily owners in addressing the extreme costs for retrofits, the Council gave meaningless lip service to possibly addressing the issue in the uncertain future that may help owners with covering these costs.  Such vagueness is little solace for mom-and-pop owners now facing down a gun barrel the Council has created by imposing this new retrofit requirement.  The funding should be found FIRST and the mandate to follow only AFTER and UNLESS funding is found.  To do otherwise, means that more mom-and-pops will be forced to sell out and their affordable rental units lost to both existing renters and future renters.

Unfortunately, the turnout of owners speaking out against this ordinance was abysmal.  Only one other person besides AAGLA spoke in opposition at the meeting.  This ordinance will impact at least 675 multifamily property owners and more than 2,000 renters.  NOW is the time for multifamily owners to speak out before it is too late and the Council votes a second time to pass this financially devastating new requirement.  Email the full Council today and tell them to stop this unfunded mandate!

Tell the City Council:

• Earthquake retrofits are prohibitively expensive and unless financial support is provided to existing multifamily owners, it will drive many mom-and-pop property owners out of business. Moms and pops own almost all of the older buildings impacted by these new requirements, and by imposing these costly requirements, the city will lose vital, affordable rental housing.

• The City must conduct a cost study to have accurate data on the current costs for complying with this massively expensive mandate.  The figures they are using as an estimate are from many years ago and the cost of labor, lumber, steel and other materials have hugely increased.

• The City must find or develop financial resources to help owners pay for these extremely expensive retrofits.  Simply saying funds aren’t currently available and moving forward is completely irresponsible and would intentionally harm existing owners and their renters.

• Specific financial assistance should include a 100% pass-through of the costs for the retrofits as they directly benefit renters by improving building safety and avoids risk of permanent relocation following a major seismic event.  The City should be creative and develop its own financial solutions, including directly providing zero interest loans to property owners for these retrofits.

• The City should expedite the permit process and waive fees as it is the one requiring that this extremely expensive retrofitting be completed long after these buildings have been built.

For multifamily owners without soft-story properties, you are not out of the woods.  Rent control is being discussed by the Council NOW.  They are having community meetings in-person and online.  Go to the community meeting in-person on September 12^th or 25^th at 6:00pm or the online meeting on September 17^th at 6:00pm (registration is required for the online meeting) and have your voices heard!  More information can be found on our website at saveburbankhousing.com.

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