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A. Obligation of Owners to Notify Tenants and Post Notice regarding the status of the building. Once the Building Official’s determination is final, owners of buildings on this inventory shall do the following:

1. Within 30 days, notify each tenant in writing, using the Notice to Tenants form provided by the Building and Safety Division, and notify each prospective tenant prior to a change of tenancy, that the building is included on the inventory. Thereafter, the Rent Stabilization Board may provide such notice on an annual basis.

2. Post in a conspicuous place within five feet of each main entrance of the building, and maintain until the building is removed from the inventory, a clearly visible warning sign not less than 8" by 10" with the following statement, with the first two words printed in 50-point bold type and the remaining words in at least 30-point type:

"Earthquake Warning. This is a building with a soft, weak, or open front ground floor. You may not be safe inside or near such buildings during an earthquake."

3. Mail, within 30 days of initial service, a copy of each tenant notification form in compliance with this Section and a completed proof of service addressed to: Soft Story Program, Building and Safety Division, 2120 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704. Any tenant’s name so provided shall be used by the City only for purposes of confirmation.

4. Private right of action--Any person aggrieved by an owner’s failure to comply with the requirements of Section 19.39.060.A may bring a civil action against the owner for all appropriate relief. In any such action, the prevailing party(ies) shall be entitled to reasonable attorneys’ fees in addition to other costs, and in addition to any liability for damages imposed by law.

B. Obligation of Owners to carry out the retrofit:

1. The owners of potentially hazardous SWOF buildings shall apply for and obtain building permits for seismic retrofitting within the time frame specified in the compliance schedule set out in this Chapter.

2. The owners of potentially hazardous SWOF buildings shall seismically upgrade the buildings within the time frame specified in the compliance schedule specified in this Chapter to the standard required in this Chapter, or an alternative standard which is in accordance with the City’s Building Code and is accepted by the Building Official in writing.

C. Obligation of Owners to Notify Tenants regarding the retrofit.

1. The owners of potentially hazardous SWOF buildings shall notify each tenant in writing of the planned schedule for seismic retrofitting pursuant to this Chapter, at least thirty (30) days in advance of the first planned construction. Such notice shall include any reasonably anticipated major disruption or reduction in service provided to the tenants.

2. The owners of potentially hazardous SWOF buildings shall notify each tenant in writing of any relocation by the tenant that will be reasonably necessitated by mandatory seismic retrofit as provided for in BMC Section 13.84.040.

3. The owners of potentially hazardous SWOF buildings shall notify each tenant that they may be eligible for financial assistance to offset the cost of the relocation as provided for in BMC Chapter 13.84 and shall provide a copy of that Chapter to each tenant.

D. Obligations of Tenants to Cooperate. Each tenant of a potentially hazardous SWOF building shall cooperate with the owner and the owner’s agents, including but not limited to engineers, contractors, and inspectors, to accomplish the required analysis and retrofit. In so doing, tenants shall allow reasonable access to the building and their unit or space as needed and as permitted by California Civil Code Section 1954. (Ord. 7318-NS § 1 (part), 2013: Ord. 6883-NS § 1 (part), 2005)