Crackdown on Earthquake Inspections

LOS ANGELES —  Nearly a year after the city required the owners of steel-frame buildings to inspect for earthquake damage, 39 buildings, including department stores, banks and an animation studio, have yet to be inspected, according to city officials.

On Monday, Department of Building and Safety officials will begin issuing the owners a notice of noncompliance, which acts like a property lien, making it difficult to sell or refinance buildings.

The structures that are still uninspected include a Robinsons-May department store in Woodland Hills, the Westside Pavilion in West Los Angeles and the Hanna-Barbera studios in Universal City, according to records provided by the department.

Most of the other structures are office buildings and banks in the San Fernando Valley and West Los Angeles.

A spokesman for the Westside Pavilion said the delay in completing the inspection was caused by a recent change in ownership of the mall.

But Poom Chantha, the mall’s general manager, said a consultant has been hired to complete the necessary work and will submit a report to the city within 30 days.

“We have every intention of fulfilling our obligations,” he said.

However, a spokesman for the Robinsons-May in the Topanga Plaza mall disputed city records that say the building has not been inspected.

James Watterson, vice president for public relations for the department store, said he has been told by the company’s construction unit that the city records are “absolutely not true.”

A spokesman for Hanna-Barbera could not be reached for comment.

Richard Holguin, chief of the city’s Building Bureau, said he stands by the city’s records. He added that the owners of all 39 buildings have been sent several notices over the last few months, requesting an inspection report or an explanation as to why the inspections have not been completed. The buildings are among 259 steel-frame buildings the city targeted for inspections and repairs after structural engineers found that the 1994 Northridge earthquake caused unexpected damage to the welds of steel-frame joints. The engineers have warned that without an inspection and repairs, the buildings pose a danger in another earthquake.

In February 1995, the City Council adopted an ordinance that gave the owners six months to inspect the buildings after notification from the city. The ordinance provided an additional three months to obtain repair permits and two additional years to complete the repairs.

Most of the 39 buildings that remain uninspected were required to submit an inspection report by November or December 1995.

Councilman Hal Bernson, who heads the council’s Earthquake Recovery Committee, said the city may consider revoking the buildings’ occupancy permits if the owners continue to ignore the city’s mandates.

As for the department stores, Bernson noted that some of the malls in the Valley suffered the worst damage in the Northridge quake.

“Just because they are malls doesn’t mean they won’t collapse. Just look at the Bullock’s,” Bernson added, referring to the department store in the Northridge Fashion Center that suffered severe damage during the quake.

In the past, building owners have complained that they cannot afford the high cost of evacuating their tenants and tearing into walls to inspect the steel joints.

In fact, the Los Angeles Building Owners and Managers Assn. has asked the city to issue bonds to provide up to $200 million to help building owners pay for the inspection and repair work.

Ken Bernstein, planning aide for Councilwoman Laura Chick, whose district includes the Topanga Plaza mall, said he hopes that the building owners comply with the city’s requirements.

But he said it would be unrealistic for the city to expect mall owners to tear into the building walls in the middle of the holiday shopping season. .

“Certainly, it’s a concern to do the work during the holiday season,” Bernstein said.