Basement wall "spans" from footing to footing

The upper footing, as well as the lower footing, needs to be tied to something. Is the 12" horizontal gap prepared for a future wall?

Are you the EOR on the project? If not is there an EOR? Do the plans show stepped footings? I would start there.

1809.3 of the IBC talks about stepped footing requirements, however it appear to just say when it's needed, which in the case of your pictures, it is. Concerns include overloading the lower footing due to the loading of the higher footing creating a surcharge point load on the lower footing, frost depth, water permeability and differential settlement due to varying soil bearing capacities at different depths.

I don't like it. I guess if it was stepped, they could not use their fancy form system!

Is there a retaining wall we are missing that hasn't been formed yet?

This is standard practice in the residential construction I have seen.

Here are a couple of standard details I have seen used in the past:

I suggest asking the designer to provide the code references regarding the gap and the vertical offset.

Jc67roch:
Have the builder dig a columnar trench from the left edge of the lower ftg. form, to the right edge of the upper ftg. form, extending back under the upper ftg. 16”. Bell it out a bit at the bottom if you wish. The way that soil is standing, and if they are careful in filling this ftg. step/column, almost a if they were tremieing (sp? tremie) a deep pier, form the outer three faces 16” out onto the lower ftg. You don’t want them just throwing conc. in that hole and knocking clods of dirt into the mix as they fill it. Put in a few verts. and some bent rebars from each of the main ftgs. Does that jog in the garage ftg. plan happen at the o.h. door jamb or in the middle of the door? Neither place is a good location for differential settlement. Don’t let them just stab the A.B’s. into the tops of the walls. What about found. waterproofing and outside drain tile? Don’t let them backfill that found. with the crap diggings they have piled up around the bldg.

This is standard practice in residential construction. I spent a summer forming and pouring 3 of these a week.

While my reinforcing detail was somewhat different than that of dauwerda . I am sure I have more than a thousand designs which did not 'tie' the upper a lower footings together before the wall placement. I always thought it a waste of time & effort connecting the upper & lower footings prior to wall placement.

Thank you all for weighing in on this. I am an independent engineer "inspecting/reviewing" construction for the Owner as it is being built. The builder is difficult to get plans from, so I am in that process. Sounds like it is standard practice in the residential industry, the details Dauwerda shared are what this builder apparently does. The wall, when cast, spans the gap. But I agree with others that I don't like it. Seems it would ripe for cracks, overloading, and settlement issues at that gap area.

If you don't have the plans showing the design by others, I would be cautious to provide any review/inspection as it would seem to me you just became liable for the design and anything they do as you have no point of basis (plans) to show a different way of building this.