Seismic shift

Although the Marquette Hotel is now a historic landmark, when built in the late 1920s it was years ahead of other buildings in terms of seismic design. While many buildings were still being supported by wood and unreinforced masonry, the internal columns of the Marquette were made of steel-reinforced concrete that could bear more of the load should the New Madrid Fault shake the bedrock as it did the previous century.

But times have changed, and building codes have evolved to be more specific and in some instances more stringent about seismic regulations for buildings in major fault zones. That means more concrete and steel are needed for sturdier walls, sounder foundations and more secure bracing. It also means a general increase in construction costs for contractors.

That much is to be expected. Structural engineer Ralph Remple of Denver's Martin/Martin Inc. -- the firm that designed the new federal courthouse being built on Independence in Cape Girardeau -- says the closer a city is to a fault, the more provisions for building safety a contractor will encounter.

But some area contractors are concerned that the code Cape Girardeau adopted last year is too stringent and therefore costing them more money and materials to bring buildings up to seismic code.

In March 2003, Cape Girardeau formally adopted the 2000 version of the International Building Code. At the time, IBC 2000 was fast becoming the standard in cities across the country. In Cape Girardeau, it replaced a code called 96 BOCA, the 1996 version of the Building Officials and Code Administrators International code.

7 to 15 percent more

C.J. Morrill of Morrill Development said that while the BOCA codes from 1983 to 1996 were fairly consistent in seismic code requirements, the new IBC is a great deal more stringent. With the higher cost of steel and other building materials, he said, the code change has caused increases of anywhere from 7 to 15 percent in project costs for seismic bracing.

Mike Stallion, president of Mac Con Construction Company in Cape Girardeau, said the cost of one particular project -- a metal warehouse -- increased by 45 cents per square foot due to the change from 96 BOCA to IBC 2000.

A few years ago, the city of Sikeston, Mo., predicted that upgrading from 96 BOCA to IBC 2000 would result in a 20 percent increase in construction costs due to the change in seismic code.

"IBC is harder to comply with," Stallion said in regard to seismic code. "It results in more cost in engineering and design requirements, as well as more in construction cost."

Since Cape Girardeau isn't moving out of the seismic zone, Stallion said, the code has to change.

Steve Berry, project coordinator with Contrend Inc., agrees, and points to the numerous revisions made to the IBC's seismic codes in the latest 2003 edition as proof. Jackson is currently looking to update its code to that newer edition from 93 BOCA.

'Outsmarted themselves'

Berry and his associate, Morrill, both said the problem is that IBC 2000 was adopted as an unproven code.

"Those national engineers outsmarted themselves," Morrill said. "Their figures are far too stringent. In the 2003 version, they've already started correcting those mistakes. That's why Cape Girardeau needs to adopt IBC 2003."

John Creutz is the plan review specialist for Cape Girardeau and a structural engineer with years of experience working in the U.S. earthquake capital, California. He said IBC 2000 was largely unproven and based on revised data when the city adopted it.

IBC 2000 is not necessarily more stringent than BOCA, he said; it just gets into more detail when applied to seismic safeguards. For instance, while BOCA might look just at the composition of two bearing walls, IBC will look at the walls' composition and the bracing of the joint at which they connect.

In order to bring the Marquette up to seismic code for a building housing government agencies and employees in Cape Girardeau, Prost Builders had to install 10 shear walls, each 12 inches thick from the foundation to the top floor of the building. These walls, each consisting of solid concrete reinforced with steel rods, are anchored at the foundation and designed to absorb the brunt of the lateral load in case of an earthquake. Prost also had to install special plates, or tie shears, that are bolted to the shear walls, connecting them to the original structure.

'A sliding scale'

Project manager Bill Whitlow estimated the ties and 10 walls cost $250,000 to install. But Whitlow said the total wasn't necessarily more because of IBC 2000. That illustrates Creutz's final point, that the difference in cost due to code change can only be calculated project by project.

"It all depends on certain variables," Creutz said. "It's a sliding scale."

The variables include building size, shape, materials, location, function and soil. Depending on those variables, some projects could be cheaper under the seismic codes of IBC as opposed to those of BOCA.

Neither Creutz nor the contractors think seismic codes are keeping new businesses from locating to Cape Girardeau. Creutz said companies will come because the work force is here. Morrill and Berry think the bigger companies will build when and where needed, regardless of cost. However, they warn that this type of increase will keep smaller businesses on the fence and waiting for something to change with regard to starting new projects in the area.

Creutz said he understands the dilemma contractors face in the fault zone and sympathizes. He said that he and the associates in his city department are looking at what can be done to alleviate the cost of seismic safety in construction, including reviewing the changes made in IBC 2003.

Creutz said Sikeston's solution was to incorporate the seismic code of 96 BOCA into IBC 2000. But he doesn't see the practicality of having two code books in use at the same time.

"The key is to be conservative and realistic," Creutz said. "You want to make the buildings safe but not require companies to pour their life savings into the project."

trehagen@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137