After the article was published, the City swung into action, funded a new study and eventually assembled a new list of vulnerable buildings. A year ago Santa Monica City Council passed a new law ordering structural reviews of buildings on the list, and repairs where necessary. Notices were mailed to owners, and the retrofit program began. The program includes more than a thousand two- and three-story apartment buildings with parking on the ground floor. Many of these are known as “dingbats,” with first-floor parking accessible from alleys behind the buildings.

To help owners and renters with this process, the City has published comprehensive information on the internet. Two of these pages are:

https://www.smgov.net/Departments/PCD/Programs/Seismic-Retrofit/Resources-for-Property-Owners

https://www.smgov.net/Departments/PCD/Programs/Seismic-Retrofit