$131,000 Grant to Fund Seismic Work at City Hall

The City Hall and the adjacent community building will undergo a $180,000 seismic retrofitting as early as next fall.

Much of the work is being funded through a $131,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, officials said.

The potential problems with City Hall came to light during the 1987 Whittier Narrows quake.

Assistant City Manager Ken Duran said City Hall is a key building for coordinating emergency response in the aftermath of a major earthquake and must be able to meet seismic safety standards.

City Hall received some initial repairs after the Whittier quake, but a seismic engineer recommended that further strengthening be performed when funding was available, Duran said.

“Essentially, the project calls for the tying of the joints so the roof cannot come away from the walls,” Duran said. “It is so the building will shake as one unit.”