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15 April

Important Apartment Building Earthquake Retrofitting Requirements

2023-04-16T07:22:22-07:00

Greater Los Angeles Soft Story retrofitting History Almost eight years ago, the City of Los Angeles passed two landmark Soft Story retrofit ordinances to help ensure that when the next earthquakes hit, residential condo and apartment buildings would be more structurally sound.  Such multi-story buildings are called Soft Story structures, because they typically have large open spaces on their flimsy first or second floors, instead [...]

Important Apartment Building Earthquake Retrofitting Requirements2023-04-16T07:22:22-07:00
2 April

What Are Retaining Walls and What Causes Retaining Walls To Fail?

2023-04-06T13:11:13-07:00

How Does The Weather Affect Retaining Walls? Even if you haven’t really been paying attention to the weather this year, you know this has been a year for the record books in terms of rain!  And yes, our drought may be nearly over in the Greater Los Angeles area, but our home basements and crawlspaces have been flooded with water, and for some of [...]

What Are Retaining Walls and What Causes Retaining Walls To Fail?2023-04-06T13:11:13-07:00
27 March

Seismic Retrofitting LA – Improve Your Homes Earthquake Resistance

2023-03-27T05:09:13-07:00

If you have what is called a “Soft-Story” home, then you are in luck and should carefully read this blog for some hot-off-the-press news about seismic retrofitting and free grant money! Earthquakes in our fair city of Los Angeles can result in catastrophic damage.  For example, even if we get just a magnitude 7.0 earthquake on the Hayward fault, the resulting damage would displace 77,000 [...]

Seismic Retrofitting LA – Improve Your Homes Earthquake Resistance2023-03-27T05:09:13-07:00
21 March

Los Angeles County Supervisors Require Seismic Retrofitting

2023-06-20T07:52:10-07:00

On February 28, 2023, and in the wake of the devastating earthquakes that rocked the country of Turkey just a few weeks prior, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to require the retrofitting of older, so-called “non-ductile concrete” buildings that are at a high risk of collapse during a powerful earthquake.  The U.S. Geological Survey has said that such buildings “pose [...]

Los Angeles County Supervisors Require Seismic Retrofitting2023-06-20T07:52:10-07:00
13 March

Apartment And Condo Balcony Safety – 5 Steps To Take

2023-03-06T12:52:56-08:00

Balconies are an important feature in many residential and commercial apartment buildings in the City of Los Angeles, providing helpful outdoor space and views of the surrounding neighborhood. However, such balconies can also pose a safety risk if they are not properly maintained and inspected.  In recent years, several high-profile balcony collapses have emphasized the need for increased attention to balcony safety. An apartment [...]

Apartment And Condo Balcony Safety – 5 Steps To Take2023-03-06T12:52:56-08:00
6 March

Cost of Building A Retaining Wall In Los Angeles

2023-03-06T12:44:26-08:00

While the recent stormy weather in Los Angeles has been great for filling up our lakes and water reservoirs, it has also been devastating for those homeowners who live homes on or near hillsides.  In many such cases, we have seen rainwater, dirt, and debris which run down a slope, enter a home and jeopardize the stability of its structure and foundation.  Luckily, there are [...]

Cost of Building A Retaining Wall In Los Angeles2023-03-06T12:44:26-08:00
16 February

What Can Los Angeles Learn From Turkey’s Earthquake Misery?

2023-02-16T21:06:52-08:00

It is a well-known saying that those who do not learn from history, are doomed to repeat it.  In the wake of the 1994 Northridge Earthquake, the City of Los Angeles, as well as those living in this earthquake-prone area, have made significant investments in developing new earthquake warning systems, enacting better building codes, and putting into practice important earthquake retrofitting  programs such as the [...]

What Can Los Angeles Learn From Turkey’s Earthquake Misery?2023-02-16T21:06:52-08:00
2 February

What Have We Learned From the 1994 Northridge, CA Earthquake

2023-02-02T14:11:25-08:00

It has been nearly three decades since the January 17, 1994 Northridge earthquake, and the question on the minds of millions of Los Angelinos is:  are we safer today than we were back then?  Are the lives of our loved ones secure?  Are our homes and commercial businesses safe?  The answer to these questions is, unfortunately, more complex than one would hope…* Let’s start with [...]

What Have We Learned From the 1994 Northridge, CA Earthquake2023-02-02T14:11:25-08:00
23 January

Balcony Inspection and Repair Project Scope of Work

2023-01-26T18:27:41-08:00

Here at Weinstein Construction, we are always hard at work putting together helpful information for our clients, and especially the specific details of each project’s scope of work.  As such, we thought it would be helpful for owners of multi-unit residential apartment buildings, as well as for a home owner’s association of a condo building, to learn more about what a typical scope of [...]

Balcony Inspection and Repair Project Scope of Work2023-01-26T18:27:41-08:00
15 January

How Much Does A Balcony Inspection or Balcony Repair Cost?

2023-01-15T20:02:03-08:00

If you are the owner of a Los Angeles multi-unit residential apartment building, or the home association of a condo building, you are probably familiar by now with California Senate Bills 326 and 721, otherwise known as the “Balcony Inspection Laws”.  These two new laws require mandatory safety inspections and repair of damaged balconies, decks, stairs, catwalks, and other “Exterior Elevated Elements” (also called “EEE”). [...]

How Much Does A Balcony Inspection or Balcony Repair Cost?2023-01-15T20:02:03-08:00
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