Millbrae Schools Lack Seismic Certification

Millbrae’s and need further studies to ensure safety in case of an earthquake, according to a 19-month investigation released on Thursday by California Watch, a nonprofit news organization.

The organization analyzed the Seismic Safety Inventory of California Schools, a Division of State Architects study that reviewed 9,959 schools for structural integrity. The DSA report, issued in 2002 and periodically updated, found more than 7,000 state public schools at risk that never received final safety certifications. In the crunch to get schools built within the last few decades, state architects have been lax on enforcement, California Watch reported. 

California Watch found three construction projects at Taylor and one at Spring Valley lacked a detailed seismic inspection, but the dates and specifics of the projects are specious. No problems were reported for Mills High School.

“The district is doing the research to determine the status of the projects,” said Paul Disario, interim chief business officer for the Millbrae School District.

California began regulating school architecture for seismic safety in 1933 with the Field Act, after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake destroyed about 230 school buildings in Long Beach. But, in the crunch to get schools built within the last few decades, state architects have been lax on enforcement, California Watch reported.

A separate inventory completed nine years ago found 7,500 seismically risky school buildings in the state. Yet, California Watch reports that only two schools have been able to access a $200 million fund for upgrades. 

 Assembly Bill 300 was passed in 1999 requiring the state to compile a seismic safety inventory of California’s K-12 school buildings. If the state deems schools might possibly be unsafe in the event of an earthquake, it will send an AB300 letter to the school district.

However, the letter does not mean a building has structural or safety issues.

“Schools most likely meet DSA standards, but the inspector may not have properly sent in the paperwork to the state,” Disario said.

Construction projects over $33,000 require DSA approval, but often school districts are unaware of the rule and don’t file with the state. As a result, the DSA may flag projects that may be perfectly safe.

For example, a school district’s maintenance department might build a baseball dugout or a retaining wall, or even just repave a parking lot. Generally, districts assume they can build such small-scale projects without state approval – but that’s not true, said a local facilities inspector who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Another common problem with DSA certification results from “poor paperwork,” the inspector said. In these cases, larger projects – ones the districts know for sure will require state approval – are pre-approved by the DSA but not properly signed off afterward.

The inspector noted that the DSA is not at fault for these oversights. When it comes to uncertified structures, he said, “It’s not the DSA’s job to fix it, it’s the school district’s job to fix it.”

He likened blaming the DSA for uncertified projects to blaming the DMV for unlicensed drivers.

Disario does not have a list of the flagged projects, but has recently communicated with DSA officials to ensure compliance. The district expects to receive a detailed list of the potential seismic hazards for the two Millbrae schools in about a week.

The report also found that three Millbrae schools, Taylor, Meadows Elementary and Spring Valley Elementary are in proximity of the San Andreas Fault. In the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake however, there was no significant damage to Millbrae schools, according to Disario.

This story was produced using data provided to Patch by California Watch, the state's largest investigative reporting team and part of the Center for Investigative Reporting. 

To view the interactive map, click here http://projects.californiawatch.org/earthquakes/school-safety/

San Mateo Patch Editor Don Frances contributed to this report.