Agenda 8-m - Amendment Outline Form for UDO Text Amendments – Update of Effective Date of Flood Information Rate Maps (FIRM)

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Form Revised 09-29-16 2. Analysis As required under Section 2.8.5 of the UDO, the Planning Director is required to: ‘… cause an analysis to be made of the application and, based upon that analysis, prepare a recommendation for consideration by the Planning Board and the Board of County Commissioners’. Orange County has been a member of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) since approximately 1976. The NFIP offers flood insurance to homeowners, renters, and business owners if their community participates in the program through the adoption and enforcement of regulations designed to mitigate/reduce flood risk. This includes adoption of flood maps denoting areas where flooding is a possibility, specifically Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) developed and maintained by FEMA. On November 14, 2017 the BOCC approved a UDO and Zoning Atlas Amendment package that: 1. Adopted new FIRM maps with an effective date of November 17, 2017, 2. Eliminated the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) Overlay District, and 3. Updated existing flood damage prevention regulations to ensure consistency with State and Federal requirements. Agenda materials from the November 14, 2017 public hearing can be accessed utilizing the following link: http://cms3.revize.com/revize/orangecounty/document_center/BOCCAgendaMinutes/ 171114.pdf State FEMA officials recently informed staff there is going to be a FIRM update modifying existing flood data. As a result of these changes, the effective date of the FIRM will change from November 17, 2017 to October 19, 2018. It should be noted this update will not ‘create’ new flood area, or alter previously defined floodway on property, within the County’s planning jurisdiction. Unfortunately as there is an update to existing data, the FIRM has to be modified to incorporate same, thereby changing the effective date. Orange County must modify existing regulation(s) to reflect the new FIRM effective date of October 19, 2018 in order to continue to be eligible for participation in the NFIP. This amendment needs to be adopted on or before October 19, 2018. 3. Comprehensive Plan Linkage (i.e. Principles, Goals and Objectives) Chapter 2 Planning Principles of the Comprehensive Plan: • Principle 2 – Sustainable Growth and Development: Growth and development within the county should occur in a pattern, location, and density that is sustainable over the long-term. Chapter 5 Land Use Element of the Comprehensive Plan: • Land Use Goal 1 – Fiscally and environmentally responsible, sustainable 4