City Of West Hollywood Offers Earthquake Brace + Bolt (EBB) Program

From the City of West Hollywood:

February 26, 2020

The City of West Hollywood is getting the word out that the registration period for the statewide Earthquake Brace + Bolt (EBB) program has opened and applications will be accepted until Thursday, March 19, 2020. Homeowners can find participation details at www.EarthquakeBraceBolt.com. Once registration ends, qualifying homeowners will be selected through a drawing, after which they will be notified if they have been selected, or if they have been placed on a waiting list.

The EBB program offers up to $3,000 to help California homeowners retrofit a single-family house to reduce potential damage from earthquakes. A residential seismic retrofit makes a house more resistant to earthquake activity, such as ground shaking and soil failure, by bolting the house to its foundation and adding bracing around the perimeter of the crawl space. The EBB program is part of the California Residential Mitigation Program (CRMP), a joint-exercise-of-powers entity formed by its members, the California Earthquake Authority (CEA), and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES).

Since 2016, City of West Hollywood homeowners have been eligible to participate in the EBB program to assist in defraying the cost of seismic retrofits to houses. With additional funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the EBB program has expanded to 355 ZIP Codes in 133 cities. Since the program was founded in 2013, EBB grants have helped more than 9,000 California homeowners retrofit their houses.

The City of West Hollywood takes a proactive approach to seismic safety and encourages eligible homeowners to apply. While no building is absolutely earthquake-proof, retrofitting buildings will save lives, protect property, and minimize damage in the event of a major earthquake. For more information about seismic safety in the City of West Hollywood, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Building and Safety Division at (323) 848-6475.

For reporters and members of the media seeking additional information, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Public Information Officer, Sheri A. Lunn, at (323) 848-6391 or slunn@weho.org. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call (323) 848-6496. For up-to-date news and events, follow the City of West Hollywood on social media @WeHoCity and sign up for news updates at www.weho.org/email.

This press release was produced by the City of West Hollywood. The views expressed here are the author’s own.