Item 5-a - Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendments – Update of Effective Date of Flood Information Rate Maps (FIRM)

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7 Attachment 2 1 MINUTES 2 ORANGE COUNTY PLANNING BOARD 3 SEPTEMBER 5,2018 4 REGULAR MEETING 5 6 7 MEMBERS PRESENT: Randy Marshall (Vice-Chair), Bingham Township Representative; Kim Piracci, At-Large;Adam 8 Beeman, Cedar Grove Township Representative; Carrie Fletcher, Bingham Township Representative; Patricia 9 Roberts, Cheeks Township Representative; Laura Nicholson, Eno Township Representative; Hunter Spitzer, At- 10 Large; 11 12 MEMBERS ABSENT: Paul Guthrie, At-Large Chapel Hill Township; David Blankfard, Hillsborough Township 13 Representative;Alexander Gregory, Chapel Hill Township Representative; Lydia Wegman (Chair), At-Large Chapel 14 Hill Township Representative; Buddy Hartley, Little River Township Representative; 15 16 STAFF PRESENT: Michael Harvey, Current Planning Supervisor; Tom Altieri, Comprehensive Planning Supervisor; 17 Perdita Holtz, Planning Systems Supervisor; Nishith Trivedi, Transportation Planner; Meredith Kern,Administrative 18 Assistant II 19 20 OTHERS PRESENT: Linda Griffin, Minutes Preparer; 21 22 AGENDA ITEM 7: UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE(UDO)TEXT AMENDMENTS—FEMA FLOOD MAPS-To make a 23 recommendation to the BOCC on government-initiated text amendments to the LIDO regarding FEMA flood maps. 24 This item is scheduled for public hearing on October 16, 2018. 25 26 PRESENTER: Michael Harvey, Current Planning Supervisor 27 28 Michael Harvey: To remind you that we are a participant in the National Flood Insurance Program, which requires 29 the County to enforce flood damage prevention regulations including adopting and enforcing what are known as 30 Flood Insurance Rate Maps or FIRMS. There is a database maintained by FEMA and in this case also by the State 31 of North Carolina. The State of North Carolina is also unique in that they have a technical agreement in partnership 32 with Federal FEMA to update and maintain Flood Maps. In the Fall of last year we revamped our entire flood plain 33 management ordinance to address changes to make FEMA including adopting a whole new set of FIRMS. Included 34 within your packet is a sample of the online data available showing location of special flood hazard areas and other 35 map details. This is technically known as the FIRM map. This map is what staff references for local resident's and 36 property owners when their parcels of property are encumbered by flood plain and this is the document we utilize to 37 give them information about what their development opportunities and constraints are. Last November the County 38 Commissioners'approved amendments to adopt the new FIRM maps with an effective date of November 17, 2017. 39 We were informed in May of 2018 by FEMA that they need to update and"tweak" several maps primarily impacting 40 Durham County. FIRM maps don't respect political boundaries and there are several Orange County FIRMs that 41 include property in Durham County. If FEMA changes flood data in this area,they are effectively changing the 42 effective date of this map. The short and sweet of why we have initiated this amendment is that in order for the 43 County to remain a member of the National Flood Insurance Program we have to update our Unified Development 44 Ordinance to properly reflect the new effective date of the new FIRMs,which is going to be October 19, 2018. If we 45 fail to do this,we will be suspended from the National Flood Insurance Program and local residents will not be able 46 to get flood insurance. It should not come to that but that's the practical results of us not moving forward and doing 47 this. We are updating the effective FIRM date in the UDO as we are required to do and making a couple of"tweaks" 48 to make existing a little more user friendly. The staff recommendation is that you all take an affirmative action on 49 recommending approval of the statement of consistency and attachment to and recommend the change to the 50 ordinance amendment attachment. 51