Does Garden City, NY need an earthquake retrofit?

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Garden City is Category B. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Nationally, Garden City ranks above 62% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 62th percentile.

Where Garden City sits in New York

USGS's underlying values for Garden City: 0.159g peak ground acceleration, 0.263g at short period, 0.057g at 1 second. Within New York alone, Garden City ranks 59 of 170 cities by seismic hazard - the 66th percentile in-state. Garden City has a population of about 22,993.

Bracing and bolting: the actual cost

A full earthquake retrofit typically runs $5,000-$10,000 nationally (around $7,000 typical), driven mainly by house size and foundation type, not by New York specifically. California's Earthquake Brace + Bolt grant, which covers a large share of this cost, is a California-only program and does not apply in New York.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Garden City homeowner cannot buy a standalone earthquake policy in most cases - it is added to an existing homeowners policy as an endorsement, so the place to start is a regular home-insurance quote.

Where Garden City's figures come from

Garden City's Category B and every number above trace to USGS's own ASCE 7-16 Design Maps service - see the methodology guide. See the category explainer for what Category B does and doesn't tell you about Garden City.