Wentzville's Seismic Design Category, explained

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Wentzville is Category D. High seismic hazard - this is the category most of coastal California, the Pacific Northwest, and other active fault regions fall into. Code mandates significant seismic detailing and restricts irregular structural configurations. This is the category the Brace + Bolt scope (cripple-wall bracing, foundation bolting) is built for. Nationally, Wentzville ranks above 80% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 80th percentile.

Where Wentzville sits in Missouri

USGS's underlying values for Wentzville: 0.146g peak ground acceleration, 0.285g at short period, 0.128g at 1 second. Within Missouri alone, Wentzville ranks 66 of 135 cities by seismic hazard - the 51th percentile in-state. Wentzville has a population of about 48,646.

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 Missouri 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 Missouri.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Wentzville 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 Wentzville's figures come from

Wentzville's Category D 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 D does and doesn't tell you about Wentzville.