Mayor says it’s time to fix brick buildings
By Phil Molnar – Special to the Dispatch
GILROY
When the next earthquake hits, try to avoid the 7500 block downtown.
The city of Gilroy has 25 to 30 unreinforced masonry buildings, all in danger of collapsing and nine of those are located in the 7500 block between Fourth and Fifth streets.
“We’ve always been concerned about those buildings collapsing, that’s why we had to create an ordinance,” said Mayor Al Pinheiro.
When asked when he would like to see the URM buildings reinforced, his answer was clear:
“Yesterday,” he said.
Business owners residing in the URM buildings don’t seem particularly concerned. Peggy Ashford, owner of Ashford’s Heirlooms at 7547 Monterey St., has never worried about her building collapsing.
“Even in (the 1989 earthquake) we didn’t have any damage,” she said.
Ashford, who owns her building, said she plans on reinforcing the entire structure, because of concern for customer safety.
The same sentiment persists a few doors down at Gabro’s Antique Mall where Iris O’Malley rents a space at the 7517 Monterey St. co-op.
“There was no damage here (after Tuesday’s earthquake) or in the 1989 quake. In fact, this building was even here during the big one in 1906.”
Regardless of the buildings still standing, “we still live in a very seismically active area and if that epicenter was closer they could have collapsed,” said Gilroy Community Development Director Wendie Rooney.
So, what happens when a URM building sustains a couple earthquakes without significant damage?
Rooney said the building’s age, amount of unreinforced materials, and the structural quality will be factors in the building collapsing.
“We have no way of predicting when the next quake could come, so reinforcing the buildings is the best thing to do,” said Rooney.
Mayor Pinheiro would not go as far as saying residents should stay out of the URM buildings but stressed citizens look in windows for mandatory earthquake warning sings outside all the buildings.
The buildings on the URM list were not inspected after Tuesday’s earthquake, according to Pinheiro.
The building owners have two-and-a-half years to reinforce their buildings or face a stiff monthly fine of $10,000.
The Gilroy City Council approved the ordinance in January, following the lead of many other Californian cities.
