Woodland's Seismic Design Category, explained

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Woodland 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. Rank it against the rest of the country and Woodland sits at the 87th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

How Woodland compares

USGS's underlying values for Woodland: 0.374g peak ground acceleration, 0.822g at short period, 0.393g at 1 second. Within Washington alone, Woodland ranks 88 of 125 cities by seismic hazard - the 30th percentile in-state. Woodland has a population of about 6,496.

Retrofit economics for Woodland

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 Washington 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 Washington.

Earthquake insurance for a Woodland home

A Woodland 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 Woodland's figures come from

Woodland'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 Woodland.