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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01042007 BSC Agenda Item 3 . • Building and Standards Commission/Zoning and Planning Commission City of West University Place, Texas 3800 University Boulevard West University Place, Texas 77005 January 2, 2007 Honorable Mayor& Members of the City Council City of West University Place 3800 University Boulevard West University Place, Texas 77005-2830 Subject: Preliminary report on a directive by City Council to study the zoning and building development regulations of the City of West University Place, Texas("City")relating to FLOODPLAIN REGULATIONS. To the Honorable Mayor &Members of City Council: The Building& Standards Commission(BSC)and the Zoning&Planning Commission (ZPC)of the City submits this preliminary report on the subject proposal for the assistance of the Council as well as other interested persons. Scope of Proposal. City Council directed the members of the BSC and the ZPC to review and study the floodplain regulations and the preliminary revised floodplain maps and accompanying flood insurance study and make recommendations to City Council concerning possible amendments to the flood protection and prevention regulations of the City. The BSC and ZPC met jointly to discuss the preliminary revised floodplain maps(FIRM's) and the implications of adopting regulations to implement and enforce the FIRM's upon receipt of the final determination letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA)and notification of the effective date of the maps. To participate in the National Flood Insurance Program(NFIP), a community must agree to manage development in its most flood-prone areas. A community must agree to adopt and enforce floodplain management measures that comply with the NFIP's requirements. Local floodplain administrators are responsible for ensuring that those engaged in development activities within the community abide by local floodplain management regulations. The recent revisions to the floodplain maps necessitate the adoption of the latest floodplain maps and accompanying study,as well as possible amendments to the current zoning and building development regulations. The commissions identified several issues resulting from the workshop discussions and agreed to divide the issues between the respective bodies for further discussion and subsequent recommendations to City Council. The identified issues are as follows: 1. Should the City of West University Place adopt a"freeboard"requirement(higher regulatory base flood elevation)for all structures located within the special flood hazard areas? 2. Should the maximum building height directly correspond with any higher regulatory "freeboard"requirements? 3. If a freeboard requirement is adopted,what changes to the building site drainage regulations should be made? Should net fill on a building site be limited? If structures are elevated(such as in crawl space construction)should stricter provisions for crawl space drainage be considered? 4. Existing structures not currently located in a special flood hazard area will be located in such area upon the effective date of the new maps. The existing elevations of the structures may hinder the issuance of permits for improvements in the future. What criteria will be used to determine if a structure can be improved,or in some cases repaired, if located in a special flood hazard area? • 5. Other issues identified by the commissions included flooding caused by vehicular traffic through flooded streets causing a"wake"effect thereby causing wave action pushing water into structures;blocked or restricted storm sewers and storm sewer drains from blowing and/or dumping leaves,grass clippings, etc. into the storm drains. Recommendations: Respectfully Submitted, Bryant Slimp,Chair Steve Brown,Chair Building& Standards Commission Zoning&Planning Commission • • Federal Emergency Management Agency 0,� "' Washington, D.C. 20472 44ND stir CERTIFIED MAIL IN REPLY REFER TO: RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED 19P December 18,2006 The Honorable Burt Ballanfant Community: City of West University Mayor,City of West University Place Place,Texas 3800 University Blvd. Community No.: 480318 West University Place Map Panels Affected: 48201C0855L, 0860L Dear Mayor Ballanfant: This is to formally notify you of the final flood elevation determination for the City of West University Place, Harris County, Texas, in compliance with Title 44, Chapter I, Part 67, Section 67.11, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). This section requires that notice of final flood elevations shall be sent to the Chief Executive Officer of the community, all individual appellants, and the State National Flood Insurance Program(NFIP) Coordinator, and shall be published in the FEDERAL REGISTER. On April 20, 2000, the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM);•that identified the Special Flood Hazard Areas in your community. Recently, FEMA completed a re-evaluation of flood hazards in your community. On September 30, 2004, FEMA provided you with Preliminary copies of the FIS report and Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM)that identify the existing flood hazards in your community, including elevations of the flood having a 1-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (base flood). The proposed Base Flood Elevations (BFEs) for your community were published in the West University Examiner on December 15, 2004 and December 22, 2004, and in the FEDERAL REGISTER at Part 67, Volume 70, Number 130, Page 39469 on July 8,2005. The statutory 90-day appeal period, which was initiated on the second newspaper publication date cited above, has ended. FEMA did not receive any appeals of the proposed BFEs during that time. Accordingly, the BFEs for your community are considered fmal. The Final Rule for BFEs will be published in the FEDERAL REGISTER as soon as possible. The FIS report and DFIRM for your community will become effective on June 18, 2007. Before the effective date, FEMA will send you final printed copies of the FIS report and DFIRM. Because the FIS establishing the BFEs for your community has been completed,certain additional requirements must be met under Section 1361 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, as amended, within 6 months from the date of this letter. Prior to June 18, 2007, your community is required, as a condition of continued eligibility in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), • • to adopt or show evidence of adoption of floodplain management regulations that meet the standards of Paragraph 60.3(c)of the enclosed NFIP regulations(44 CFR 59, etc.)by the effective date of the DFIRM. These standards are the minimum requirements and do not supersede any State or local requirements of a more stringent nature. It must be emphasized that all of the standards specified in Paragraph 60.3(c) of the NFIP regulations must be enacted in a legally enforceable document. This includes adoption of the current effective FIS and DFIRM to which the regulations apply and other modifications made by this map revision. Some of the standards should already have been enacted by your community in order to establish initial eligibility in the NFIP. Your community can meet any additional requirements by taking one of the following actions: 1.Amending existing regulations to incorporate any additional requirements of Paragraph 60.3(c); 2.Adopting all of the standards of Paragraph 60.3(c) into one new, comprehensive set of regulations; or 3.Showing evidence that regulations have previously been adopted that meet or exceed the minimum requirements of Paragraph 60.3(c). Communities that fail to enact the necessary floodplain management regulations will be suspended from participation in the NFIP and subject to the prohibitions contained in Section 202(a) of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (Public Law 93-234)as amended. In addition to your community using the FIS to manage development in the floodplain,FEMA will use the FIS to establish appropriate flood insurance rates. On the effective date of the revised DFIRM, actuarial rates for flood insurance will be charged for all new structures and substantial improvements to existing structures located in the identified SFHAs. These rates may be higher if structures are not built in compliance with the floodplain management standards of the NFIP. The actuarial flood insurance rates increase as the lowest elevations (including basement) of new structures decrease in relation to the BFEs established for your community. This is an important consideration for new construction because building at a higher elevation can greatly reduce the cost of flood insurance. To assist your community in maintaining the DFIRM,we reviewed our records to determine if any previous Letters of Map Change (i.e., Letters of Map Amendment, Letters of Map Revision) will be superseded when the revised DFIRM panels referenced above become effective. According to our records,no Letters of Map Change were issued previously for the affected DFIRM panels. The DFIRM and FIS report for your community have been prepared in our countywide format, which means that flood hazard information for all jurisdictions within Harris County has been combined into one DFIRM and FIS report. When the FIS and DFIRM are printed and distributed, your community will receive only those panels that present flood hazard information for your community. We will provide complete sets of the DFIRM panels to county officials, where they will be available for review by your community. The DFIRM panels have been computer-generated. Once the FIS and DFIRM are printed and distributed, the digital files containing the flood hazard data for the entire county can be provided to your community for use in a computer mapping system. These files can be used in conjunction with other thematic data for floodplain management purposes, insurance purchase and rating • • requirements, and many other planning applications. Paper copies of the DFIRM panels may be obtained by calling our Map Service Center, toll free, at 1-800-358-9616, or via our Map Service Center Web site at http://store.msc.fema.gov. Copies of the digital files may be obtained by calling our Map Assistance Center,toll free, at 1-877-FEMA MAP(1-877-336-2627). In addition, your community may be eligible for additional credits under our Community Rating System if you implement your activities using digital mapping files. Because there are a number of ways your community may adopt the floodplain management measures required Pagano, Director,join the NFIP, we urge you to contact Frank Pa Mitigation � ation in g Division of FEMA n Denton, Texas, at(940) 898-5165, for assistance. If you have any questions concerning mapping issues in general, please contact Jack Graham of our staff in Denton, Texas, at(940)898-5463. Sincerely, William R.Blanton Jr.,CFM,Chief Engineering Management Section Mitigation Division List of Enclosures: "Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Effect That Revised Flood Hazards Have on Existing Structures" "Lowest Floor Elevation Certifications for Flood Insurance Post Flood Insurance Rate Map Construction" "National Flood Insurance Program Elevation Certificate and Instructions" "National Flood Insurance Program Regulations" Use of Flood Insurance Study(FIS)Data as Available Data cc: Community Map Repository Deborah Scarceila Building Official,City of West University Place