In 2012, the City of Seattle established an Unreinforced Masonry (URM) Policy Committee to develop recommendations for Seattle’s Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) on a mandatory URM seismic retrofit program. The committee provided recommendations to SDCI in 2017, though they have yet to be enacted. In July 2018, the City engaged the National Development Council (NDC) to identify potential financing and funding mechanisms, with an emphasis on strategies to assist property owners who would face financial difficulties related to URM retrofit requirements, and develop strategies to mitigate those financial impacts. NDC, along with experts in the fields of construction, finance, and economics, estimated retrofit costs, researched best practices in peer cities, examined economic impacts of retrofits, and studied a comprehensive set of potential funding sources.The final report has been delivered to the city, URM retrofit funding. With the completion of this report, along with the recommendations of the URM Policy Committee, the City will begin developing high-level policy recommendations for the Mayor’s Office to review.
Learn more and read the report HERE