Does Rochelle, IL need an earthquake retrofit?

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Rochelle is Category B. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Nationally, Rochelle ranks above 43% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 43th percentile.

Rochelle by the numbers

The raw figures: peak ground acceleration 0.068g, short-period spectral response 0.131g, 1-second spectral response 0.065g. Among 330 Illinois cities in this dataset, Rochelle ranks 115 for seismic hazard, the 65th percentile within the state. About 9,510 people live in Rochelle, Illinois.

What a retrofit costs in Rochelle

Outside California, no state-level retrofit grant equivalent to Brace + Bolt could be found for Illinois. A typical retrofit still runs $5,000-$10,000 nationally, about $7,000 for a common single-family job.

Earthquake insurance for a Rochelle home

Outside California, earthquake coverage is typically sold as an endorsement added to a standard homeowners policy, not a separate product - worth asking about directly when getting a home-insurance quote for a Rochelle address.

More on how this number was built

The methodology guide covers exactly how USGS's public design-maps API produced Rochelle's numbers. The guide to what a Seismic Design Category actually means covers why a category is never a substitute for an engineer's assessment of one specific house.