Ordinance triggers flood insurance action
The Federal Emergency Management Agency last year completed a flood map of Woodbury and required a new local ordinance identifying the floodplain districts and outlining development use for those areas.
Council members on Jan. 27 approved the ordinance 5-0.
Now work may begin for property owners whose lots are included in the floodplain areas. Those floodplain boundaries tend to be near the city’s lakes.
State officials coordinating the FEMA flood program say property owners whose land is identified in a floodplain may be required by their mortgage lender or home insurer to obtain flood insurance.
However, roughly 450 of the 460 residential properties identified in the floodplain do not have structures in the floodplain, only a portion of the lot.
They can seek an exemption from flood insurance requirements either by obtaining an aerial photo of the property that shows that a structure is not in the floodplain boundary, or by obtaining the photo and a certificate of survey, city engineer Klayton Eckles said.
City officials prefer that property owners get both the aerial photo and the certificate of survey; that exemption will stay with the property beyond the current mortgage or owner.
The city plans to send a letter to affected homeowners within a month, explaining the issue and informing them of the exemption process. Neighborhood meetings also are planned.
“If you don’t get a letter from us, you’re probably in good shape,” Eckles said.
Tags: local government, klayton eckles, FEMA, Woodbury
