Seismic upgrades paid off for many downtown buildings

JOHN DODGE, THE OLYMPIAN

OLYMPIA -- Buildings in downtown Olympia are a study in contrasts in the aftermath of Wednesday's earthquake.

The newer ones built to the latest seismic standards in the state Uniform Building Code weathered the rumbling and shaking quite well.

Many older buildings, especially unreinforced masonry structures, took a hard hit.

All of downtown Olympia is considered an earthquake hazard zone because of the wet, loosely packed soils.

In a powerful earthquake, the soils can shake violently and liquefy, losing their strength.

"Hardly any of the buildings damaged in downtown Olympia have gone through significant seismic upgrades," said Stephen Masini, an Olympia architect.

Much of the new construction in Olympia is on the Port of Olympia peninsula, including the Phoenix Inn, Anthony's Homeport and the Market Place Office Building.

Those buildings are anchored to solid ground by pilings that penetrate the unstable fill material found throughout downtown Olympia, said Ron Rants, owner and builder of the Market Place complex.

The construction technique paid off Wednesday.

"We had some shaking, but no major damage," Rants said.

The Uniform Building Code was last upgraded in 1997 and is due for another update in 2001, Masini said.

"Every time there's an earthquake, we make adjustments," said Tim Nogler, executive director of the Washington State Building Code Council.

John Dodge covers the environ-ment and energy for The Olympian. He can be reached at 754-5444.

The Olympian Copyright 2000

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