Committee backs façade inspection expansion after downtown window failures

The Land Use and Transportation Committee on May 1 approved forwarding an amended ordinance that would expand San Francisco's façade inspection program to include buildings of 15 stories or more constructed after 1998, following a series of recent window and glazing failures.

Board President Aaron Peskin, the ordinance's sponsor, described March windstorms that preceded multiple window failures in downtown high‑rise and mid‑rise buildings, citing specific addresses the office has tracked and noting that several affected buildings were relatively new. Peskin said the ordinance gives the Department of Building Inspection (DBI) additional tools beyond existing code provisions to require reports and affirm appropriate findings for façade systems and windows.

DBI assistant director Christine Gesbaric told the committee DBI commissioned a study by WJE, a nationally recognized engineering firm with glazing expertise, to analyze the failures and identify any common design or installation issues. Gesbaric said DBI and the sponsor proposed an amendment to remove the fixed November 1, 2023 compliance date and instead require inspections within six months of a DBI notification, allowing the city to tailor requirements based on WJE's recommendations.

A public commenter thanked Peskin for raising the issue and urged the committee to parse the WJE findings and move forward with corrective measures. President Peskin moved the amendment and to send the item as amended to the full Board; Supervisors Peskin, Dean Preston and Myrna Melgar voted aye and the motion passed.

The committee record indicates DBI will use WJE's upcoming report to shape any additional inspection specifications and that the ordinance as amended keeps the broader inspection requirement while giving DBI latitude on timing to rely on the study's technical findings. The item will be considered by the full Board on May 9.