O1729
CA:atty\muni\laws\cesar\chimney.5
city Council Meeting 2-22-94
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NO.
1729
(City council Series)
AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL
OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA ESTABLISHING
REPAIR AND RECONSTRUCTION CRITERIA
FOR UNREINFORCED CHIMNEYS, WALLS OVER 42 INCHES
IN HEIGHT, AND RETROFITTING STANDARDS FOR
PUBLIC BUILDINGS AND UTILITIES
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1.
Findinqs and Purpose. The City Council finds and
declares:
(a) Numerous unreinforced chimneys and walls in the City
of Santa Monica were substantially damaged as a result of the
January 17, 1994 Northridge earthquake and its continuing
aftershocks (hereinafter, "the Northridge earthquake"), and remain
in danger of collapse during a future earthquake or aftershock,
posing an immediate threat to the public health and safety.
(b) It is necessary to establish standards to repair
and replace unreinforced chimneys and walls, to reduce the
potential for similar damage in the event of another earthquake,
in order to preserve the public peace, health and safety.
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(c) The City water supply infrastructure suffered
substantial damage as a result of the Northridge earthquake, and
continues to suffer additional damage as a result of its
continuing aftershocks. Large sections of the city water supply
infrastructure which are publicly owned, or located on public
land, public rights of way, or dedicated utility easements
(hereinafter, "the public water supply infrastructure") are
constructed of unlined rigid cast iron piping, which have proved
to be of insufficient flexibility and strength to withstand the
stresses caused by earthquake. Numerous breakages have occurred
and are continuing to occur in the City's pUblic water supply
infrastructure, all in unlined rigid cast iron piping. These
breakages have caused and are continuing to cause interruptions
of water service to portions of the City, requiring emergency
temporary repairs to restore water service.
(d) Approximately one third of the City's public water
supply infrastructure, 368,729 feet, is constructed of unlined
rigid cast iron piping, and is threatened with further breakage
from stress caused by movement of the earth. The potential for
further interruptions in public water service constitutes a
threat to the pUblic peace, health and safety.
(e) In order to repair and replace the damaged and
threatened public water supply infrastructure with a flexible
piping material which is resistant to breakage caused by movement
of the earth, thereby reducing the potential for further
interruptions of public water service, it is necessary to
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establish a minimum qualitative standard for the material to be
used to repair and replace said infrastructure.
(f) In the aftermath of the Northridge earthquake,
Santa Monica City Hall (hereinafter, "City Hall") functioned as
the center of operations to assess earthquake damage, to restore
vital municipal services and to preserve the public peace, health
and safety. city Hall is found to be an essential facility
necessary for emergency operations subsequent to a natural
disaster as defined in the section 2331 of the Uniform Building
Code, 1991 Edition, (hereinafter "UBC section 2331").
(g) In the aftermath of the Northridge earthquake,
numerous residential buildings were damaged to the extent that a
great number of persons were displaced from their homes and left
without adequate shelter. Consequently, it became necessary to
establish emergency shelters at Santa Monica College and at the
Santa Monica civic Auditorium. Of the two facilities, only the
Santa Monica civic Auditorium is under the control and
jurisdiction of the City. It is essential that the city
maintain a facility of sufficient size and occupancy capacity to
provide emergency shelter in the event of earthquake or natural
disaster. The Santa Monica civic Auditorium is found to be an
essential facility necessary for emergency operations subsequent
to a natural disaster as defined in UBC Section 2331.
SECTION 2. Repair Criteria for Masonry Chimneys.
(a) All masonry chimneys shall be altered or repaired
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according to the following standards:
1. chimneys shall be repaired or reconstructed in
compliance with UBC Chapter 37 as adopted by the city of Santa
Monica.
2. No damaged unreinforced masonry chimney may be
repaired with masonry.
3. Existing unreinforced masonry chimneys,
fireplaces, fire boxes, and foundations shall not be used for the
support of replacement masonry chimneys.
4. Where the damaged portion of a chimney is
located between the roof line and top of the chimney, the damaged
portion shall be removed to the roof line, provided the roof and
ceiling anchorage are in sound condition. Any reconstructed
portion of a chimney shall be braced to the roof structure in
compliance with UBC Chapter 37 as adopted by the City of Santa
Monica.
5. For a single story structure ih which the damaged
portion of a chimney is below the roof line, or the damaged portion
extends from above the roof line to below the roof line, the
chimney shall be removed to the top of the firebox.
6. For a multi story structure, in which the damaged
portion of a chimney is below the roof line, or the damaged portion
extends from above the roof line to below the roof line, the
damaged portion of the chimney shall be removed from the top of the
chimney to a floor line below which no significant damage to the
chimney is visible. The remaining portion of the chimney shall be
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anchored soundly to the structure in compliance with UBC Chapter 37
as adopted by the City of Santa Monica.
7. In any chimney where the firebox has been
damaged, the entire chimney and firebox shall be removed to the
foundation of the structure.
8. Where the portion of the chimney extending above
the roof line exceeds two times the least dimension of the chimney,
that portion above the roof line shall be braced to the roof
structure.
SECTION 3.
above 42 inches.
Notwithstanding UBC section 301 (b) (2), fences which
exceed 42 inches in height as measured from natural grade and are
constructed with masonry or concrete material shall require a
building permit. Such fences shall be constructed in compliance
with the construction standards of the UBC as adopted by the City
of Santa Monica.
Repair criteria for masonry or concrete fences
SECTION 4. Repair criteria for underqround utilities.
All portions of the public water supply infrastructure
constructed of unlined rigid cast iron piping shall be replaced
with ductile iron piping conforming to American Water Works
Association (AWWA) Standard C151 and American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) Standard A21.11-91. The ductile iron piping shall
be rated for a minimum of 350 pounds per square inch (psi) of
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working pressure.
SECTION 5. Essential Facilities.
Santa Monica city Hall and the Santa Monica civic
Auditorium are designated as essential facilities which are
necessary for emergency operations subsequent to a natural disaster
as defined in UBC Section 2331.
SECTION 6. The City Council finds pursuant to City Charter
section 615 that a state of local emergency exists within the City
of Santa Monica as a result of the Northridge earthquake.
SECTION 7. This Ordinance is declared to be an urgency measure
adopted pursuant to Santa Monica city Charter section 615. It is
necessary for preserving the public peace, health and safety, and
the urgency for its adoption is set forth in the findings above.
SECTION 11. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code
or appendices thereto including emergency ordinance Number 1720,
inconsistent with the provisions of this ordinance, to the extent
of such inconsistencies and no further, are hereby repealed or
modified to that extent necessary to effect the provisions of this
ordinance.
SECTION 8. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or
phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or
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unconstitutional by a decision of any court of any competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City council hereby
declares that it would have passed this ordinance, and each and
every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared
invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion
of the Ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or
unconstitutional.
SECTION 9. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall
attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause
the same to be published once in the official newspaper within 15
days after its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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Adopted and approved this 22nd day of February, 1994.
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I hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1729 (CCS) was duly and regularly
introduced at a meeting of the City Council on the 22nd day of February, 1994; that the
said Ordinance was thereafter duly adopted at a meeting of the City Council on the 22nd day
of February, 1994 by the following Council vote:
Ayes:
Councilmembers:
Abdo, Genser, Greenberg, Holbrook, Olsen, Rosenstein,
Vazquez
Noes:
Councilmembers:
None
Abstain: Councilmembers: None
Absent: Councilmembers: None
ATTEST:
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City Clerk