About the author  ⁄ Gary L. Mochizuki, P.E., S.E., LEED AP

Gary L. Mochizuki, P.E., S.E., LEED AP (gary@structsol.com), is a Principal Engineer at Structural Solutions, Inc., in Walnut Creek, California.

As early as 1970, the structural engineering and building safety community recognized that a large number of two-, three- and four-story woodframe buildings, designed with the first floor used either for parking or commercial space, were built with readily identifiable structural deficiencies, referred to as a “soft story”. Often these buildings also have a strength deficiency when compared to the stories above, in which case they are also classified as “weak”.

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Starting in 2008, members of the project team, along with others, performed tests to show that the American Concrete Institute (ACI) 318-11 Appendix D concrete shear capacities for steel anchor bolts with small edge distances connected to wood sill plates were extremely low compared to actual tested values.

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