Shorewood's Seismic Design Category, explained

Shorewood carries Seismic Design Category B under USGS's ASCE 7-16 model. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Nationally, Shorewood ranks above 18% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 18th percentile.

Shorewood by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Shorewood: 0.035g peak ground acceleration, 0.073g at short period, 0.047g at 1 second. Within Wisconsin alone, Shorewood ranks 69 of 157 cities by seismic hazard - the 56th percentile in-state. Shorewood has a population of about 13,521.

Retrofit economics for Shorewood

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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin.

What this means for insurance

A Shorewood 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 Shorewood's figures come from

Shorewood'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 Shorewood.