LA Construction Consultants LA Construction ConsultantsSoft Story Retrofit 424-946-8057
Soft story · Seismic retrofit

Your retrofit clock runs from the date on your order.

Because the city served retrofit orders in waves, no single citywide date describes every building: the only date that governs yours is the one printed on the order you were served. Send it over. We read what your order actually requires, and a licensed general building contractor runs the retrofit from engineering through construction to city sign-off, with your tenants in place.

Scope my retrofit Call 424-946-8057
Licensed California General Building Contractor (Class B) Led by Gordon Myers, in LA real estate and construction since 1988 Engineered by licensed engineers; built to their stamped plans
What a retrofit actually involves

An engineered fix for a known weak point

A soft story building carries living space over an open ground floor, most often tuck-under parking, and that open front is the weak point an earthquake finds. The retrofit is an engineered strengthening of that ground story. The path runs: a licensed engineer designs the fix, the city plan-checks it, construction follows the stamped plans, and the city signs off at the end. Your order tells us which program and which dates apply to your building, so the honest first step is reading it, not quoting a headline.

Your order governs
the program, the scope and the dates that apply to your building are printed on the order you were served, and that is what we read first
Engineered first
a licensed engineer designs the retrofit; construction follows the stamped plans through plan check to city sign-off
Tenants in place
most retrofit work lives in the parking level; sequencing keeps the building livable while it is strengthened
The scoping engine

Five answers. An honest picture of what drives your retrofit.

No web page can price a seismic retrofit, and we will not pretend otherwise. What we can do instantly: show you which of your answers actually move the scope, then have a licensed general building contractor read your order and build the real number from your building.

Scope my retrofit
Answer from your retrofit order where you have one. Not sure is a fine answer.
Where we send your scope
By submitting you agree we may contact you about your property. We never share your information.

What drives your price

Answer the questions and this panel fills in with the drivers that apply to your building, in plain English.

    Red-tagged or visibly unsafe?

    A building the city has tagged, or a ground story that looks compromised, is not a form problem. Call 424-946-8057 now.

    What the work involves

    The retrofit, stage by stage

    Engineering & plan check

    A licensed engineer evaluates the ground story and designs the strengthening; the city plan-checks the drawings before any steel is ordered.

    Construction

    Steel frames, shear walls or the system the engineer specified, installed in the parking level to the stamped plans, sequenced around residents and parking.

    City sign-off

    Inspections passed and the compliance record closed with the city, so the order that started this ends with paper that says it is done.

    How it works

    From the order in your hand to a closed compliance record

    Sequenced so the engineering answers come before the construction commitments.

    1

    Order read

    We read what your order actually requires, which program it is under, and what its dates mean for your building.

    2

    Engineering

    A licensed engineer designs the retrofit; you see the scope before plan check, not after.

    3

    Permits & build

    Plan check, permits, and construction to the stamped plans, tenants in place.

    4

    Sign-off & closeout

    City inspections passed and the documentation handed to you at the end.

    Why owners hire us

    One name from the order to the sign-off

    A retrofit crosses an engineer, a plan checker, permits, construction crews and city inspectors. The job you are actually hiring out is carrying one project across all of them without the schedule dying in a handoff. We hold the permit and run the work through to city sign-off, under a class B general building license, with the engineering carried by licensed engineers.

    What you get

    • Your order read and explained before anything is quoted
    • Engineering by licensed engineers, built to their stamped plans
    • One contract from plan check to city sign-off
    • Tenants and parking sequenced through construction
    • The closed compliance record at the end

    Led by Gordon Myers

    • Licensed General Building Contractor, Class B: DTAG Inc. dba LA Construction Consultants, CSLB Lic #1061967
    • In Los Angeles real estate and construction since 1988, personally
    • A client-first approach built on expertise, integrity, and personal dedication
    • For apartment owners, property managers, and asset managers
    Gordon Myers, founder of LA Construction Consultants
    Gordon Myers, FounderReal estate and construction in Los Angeles since 1988, guiding owners from the first finding to the final approval. One call handles every concern along the way.
    Where we work

    Serving Los Angeles & Southern California

    Based in Sherman Oaks, working across the LA metro and surrounding cities.

    Los AngelesSherman OaksSanta MonicaBeverly HillsLong BeachGlendalePasadenaBurbankVan NuysWest HollywoodCulver CityTorrance
    Questions owners ask

    Soft story retrofits, in plain English

    Is there a deadline for my building?
    The date that governs your building is printed on the order the city served you, and orders went out in waves, so your neighbor's date is not yours. If you are not sure what your order requires, or whether the letter you hold is an order at all, send it over and we will read it back to you against the city's records, plainly. If we misread nothing and you simply have time, we will say that too.
    Do you do the engineering?
    The engineering is done by licensed engineers, as the city requires, and construction is built to their stamped plans. What we carry is the whole path: the engineering coordination, plan check, permits, construction and city sign-off, as one contract with one accountable name.
    Can tenants stay during the retrofit?
    Usually yes. Most of the work lives in the ground-story parking level. Parking is disrupted, some noise and access windows are unavoidable, and we plan both with notice, but the units above generally stay occupied throughout.
    What does a retrofit cost?
    It depends on the building, and nobody can price it from a web page. What moves the number: the size and layout of the open ground story, the system the engineer specifies, how many stories sit above it, occupied-building sequencing, and permits. Send us your answers and the order, and the first number you see is one built from your building.
    Is this the same as the balcony inspection laws?
    No. Soft story retrofit programs are seismic ordinances aimed at the building's ground story. SB 721 and SB 326 are separate exterior elevated element inspection laws about balconies, decks and walkways. Buildings often owe both kinds of work; if you also hold a balcony report, start from our balcony repair page and we scope both as one conversation.