Tier 1Enforcement
20+ units, or 2009 screening non-compliance
Step 5 finalFebruary 21, 2023
Step 3 · Evaluation & Initial AffidavitFeb 21, 2021
Step 4 · Permit or TSERFeb 21, 2022
Ordinance 13516 · All tier deadlines passed
Oakland Soft Story Ordinance 13516.Every tier deadline has passed. PE-stamped evaluation report and retrofit plans in 14 days.
Oakland’s Mandatory Soft Story Retrofit Program (OMC Chapter 15.27) requires owners of pre-1991 wood-frame buildings with five or more units and a vulnerable target story to evaluate, permit, and retrofit. The final Tier 3 deadline was February 21, 2025. We prepare the TB15.27-2 report for your Initial Affidavit and carry the same building through retrofit design and permit submission.
Written scope and fee within one business day.
Target story · OMC 15.27
- 14 daysReport and retrofit plans
- 2 roundsPlan check corrections included
Who is covered
Wood-frame, five or more units, permitted before 1991.
The program applies to wood-frame residential buildings with five or more dwelling units, for which the building permit was applied for before January 1, 1991, that have a vulnerable target story: a ground story that is soft, weak, or open-front because of tuck-under parking, storefront glazing, or large openings with too little shear wall.
The City notified owners on its List and Map of Potential Soft Story Buildings in 2019 and assigned each building a tier. Tier 1 covers buildings of 20 or more units (Tier 1-LB) and buildings whose owners did not comply with the 2009 screening program (Tier 1-NR). Tier 2 covers 5 to 19 units. Tier 3 covers buildings where the target story contains residential or occupied commercial space.
Deadlines
All three tiers are past due.
Each date below is the final deadline: retrofit complete, final inspection approved, Final Affidavit filed. The interim evaluation and permit deadlines for every tier have also passed.
Tier 2Enforcement
5 to 19 units
Step 5 finalFebruary 21, 2024
Step 3 · Evaluation & Initial AffidavitFeb 21, 2022
Step 4 · Permit or TSERFeb 21, 2023
Tier 3Enforcement
Residential or commercial space in the target story
Step 5 finalFebruary 21, 2025
Step 3 · Evaluation & Initial AffidavitFeb 21, 2023
Step 4 · Permit or TSERFeb 21, 2024
Never filed Step 3? Then the building is further behind than the final date suggests. The Step 3 evaluation report and Initial Affidavit are the way back into the program, and that is where we start.
Extensions are reviewed case by case through the City’s extension request process. A completed Step 3 report and a permit application already in plan check are the strongest support for a request.
The five-step program
Oakland’s five steps, as the City names them.
H2 Seismic Pro performs Steps 3 and 4. Steps 1 and 2 are optional petitions; Step 5 is construction by your contractor.
- Step 1
Document that the building is not a subject building
Optional petition for exemption, signed by a licensed architect or engineer. Applies when the building does not meet the program criteria.
- Step 2
Document that the building is eligible for a later compliance tier
Optional petition to change tier, for example to Tier 3 when the target story contains residential or occupied commercial space.
- Step 3
Perform mandatory evaluation and submit Initial Affidavit of Compliance
Seismic Evaluation and Soft Story Retrofit Report per TB15.27-2, prepared by a licensed engineer. The owner then files the Initial Affidavit.
H2 delivers - Step 4
Obtain retrofit permit or submit Target Story Evaluation Report
Retrofit drawings and calculations submitted to Building Services, or an evaluation report showing the target story complies without strengthening.
H2 delivers - Step 5
Perform retrofit work, obtain final inspection, submit Final Affidavit
Your contractor builds to the permitted set. After final inspection, the owner files the Final Affidavit of Compliance.
Step 3 in detail
The Seismic Evaluation and Soft Story Retrofit Report.
Step 3 is governed by Technical Bulletin TB15.27-1 (Engineering Requirements for Complying with OMC Chapter 15.27), Part B, and the report follows the City’s TB15.27-2 Evaluation and Schematic Retrofit Report template. A licensed engineer evaluates the target story and prepares a schematic retrofit concept. After the owner receives and reviews the report, the owner files the Initial Affidavit of Compliance.
Oakland is unusual in one respect: the report must also evaluate non-structural hazards, including gas lines and appliance connections, chimneys, and masonry partitions and veneer. Many competing proposals leave this out or price it as an add-on. In our scope it is included, because the City requires it.
Mitigating those non-structural items is voluntary. The report tells you which are cheap to fix while the contractor is already on site.
Already compliant?
The Target Story Evaluation Report path.
Some Oakland buildings on the City list already have enough wall, or were strengthened decades ago without a clear record. For those, Step 4 does not require new construction. The engineer prepares a Target Story Evaluation Report demonstrating by analysis that the target story meets the engineering criteria as built, and it is submitted in lieu of a retrofit permit.
We tell you which path applies after the site visit and before the Step 3 report is final, so you do not pay for drawings you do not need.
Two scope options
Choose the step you need now.
Both options are fixed-fee and scoped in writing before work begins. Option A can be extended to Option B at any time without repeating work.
Option AStep 3 only
TB15.27-2 Evaluation Report
For owners who need the report on file and the Initial Affidavit submitted before deciding on retrofit timing.
- Site visit and target story evaluation
- Non-structural hazard evaluation: gas lines, chimneys, masonry partitions
- Schematic retrofit concept
- TB15.27-2 report, PE-signed
- Initial Affidavit of Compliance prepared for owner signature
Option BSteps 3 and 4
Full retrofit design through permit submission
For owners who want one firm from the evaluation through an approved permit set.
- Everything in Option A
- Retrofit drawings and calculations per IEBC Appendix Chapter A4 or ASCE 41
- Or a Target Story Evaluation Report where no strengthening is required
- Submission to Oakland Building Services
- Two rounds of plan check corrections
Written scope and fee within one business day.
Fixed fee, confirmed in writing before work begins. No hourly billing and no added charge for plan check responses.
Deliverables
What you receive, in the City’s vocabulary.
- TB15.27-2 Seismic Evaluation and Schematic Retrofit Report, PE-signed, including the non-structural hazard evaluation
- Initial Affidavit of Compliance support: affidavit prepared for owner signature and submitted on request
- Retrofit drawings and calculations per IEBC Appendix Chapter A4 or ASCE 41, stamped by a California PE
- Submission to Oakland Building Services through the City’s permit portal
- Two rounds of plan check corrections, answered by the engineer of record
Not included: construction, contractor bidding, City permit and plan check fees, special inspection and testing, geotechnical investigation, and hazardous materials surveys. After permit approval, your contractor performs the work, the City performs final inspection, and you file the Final Affidavit of Compliance.
Process
Fourteen days from site visit to stamped set.
Turnaround runs from the site visit. Plan check time at the City is outside our control; correction responses are not.
- Day 1
Intake and records
Permit history pulled, City tier confirmed, existing drawings reviewed if any.
- Scheduled at engagement
Site visit
Target story measured, framing and foundation observed, non-structural hazards documented.
- Day 7
TB15.27-2 report issued
Report signed and delivered with the Initial Affidavit prepared for your signature.
- Day 14
Stamped retrofit set
Drawings and calculations submitted to Building Services. Two rounds of corrections included.
FAQ
Common questions.
Every Oakland tier deadline has passed. What do I do now?
File what you can, as fast as you can. A building that is past its deadline is still required to complete Steps 3 through 5. The fastest path back toward compliance is a completed TB15.27-2 report and a filed Initial Affidavit, followed by a permit application. If you need more time, the City reviews extension requests case by case; a filed report and a permit application in plan check make that request far more credible.
Who files the Initial Affidavit of Compliance?
The owner or the owner’s legal representative files it, after the licensed engineer completes the Seismic Evaluation and Soft Story Retrofit Report. The engineer does not sign the affidavit. We prepare it for your signature and can submit it for you.
What if my building already meets the standard without strengthening?
Then Step 4 is a Target Story Evaluation Report instead of retrofit drawings. The engineer demonstrates by analysis that the target story satisfies the engineering criteria as built. It is submitted to the City in lieu of a retrofit permit. The analysis has to be rigorous; it is reviewed by Building Services the same way a retrofit design is.
Are the gas line, chimney, and masonry findings mandatory to fix?
No. Oakland requires the engineer to evaluate and report non-structural hazards in the Step 3 report, but mitigation of those items is voluntary. The mandatory work is the target story retrofit. Many owners address the easy items, such as gas shutoff valves and chimney bracing, while the contractor is already mobilized.
Who may prepare the report and stamp the drawings?
The Step 3 report must be prepared by a California-licensed engineer or architect. Retrofit drawings and calculations are prepared and stamped by a California-licensed civil or structural engineer. H2 Seismic Pro is led by a California PE with doctoral-level training in structural and seismic engineering.
Do I need the original drawings?
No. Most Oakland soft story buildings have none on file. Without drawings, the engineer field-measures the target story, confirms framing and foundation conditions on site, and pulls the permit history. That is part of the written scope.
Get a written scope
Send the address and your tier. Get a written scope.
Every request is reviewed by a licensed PE. Include the tier on your City notice if you have it.
- Response
- Written scope and fee within one business day.
- Turnaround
- TB15.27-2 report and retrofit plans in 14 days from site visit.
- Fee
- Fixed fee, confirmed in writing before work begins. No hourly billing and no added charge for plan check responses.
- Phone
- (510) 288-9352
- Office
- Dublin, CA 94568