Even before Sandy, more velocity zones were in the works for bay neighborhoods
Higher building elevations and an expansion of the most restrictive zone are likely as the federal government maps flood hazards after Hurricane Sandy.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently unveiled Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps for much of the New Jersey coast, including for Cape May and Atlantic counties.
According to Bill McDonnell, deputy branch director of mitigation for FEMA, shore towns will see more areas included in the velocity zone, the area in which construction is at greatest risk from floods and waves.
But don?t blame Sandy, he said.
?It?s a change that would have taken place when we redid the maps anyway,? he said.
Sandy devastated the New Jersey coast, causing billions of dollars? worth of damage. But the storm was not part of FEMA?s study, which produced the data to help draw the new maps. According to McDonnell, FEMA looked at hundreds of possible scenarios, including some that were similar to Sandy, in drawing the map.
But the storm did influence the timing of the ABFE release.
With homeowners, businesses and municipalities working to rebuild after the storm, FEMA wanted to give some indication of what flood insurance maps will look like in the future.
FEMA officials say the maps, or ABFEs, will help communities rebuild stronger after the Oct. 29 storm, and give local officials a better picture for guiding new construction.
The base flood elevation is a level of flooding that has a 1 percent chance of happening in a given year, from what?s often called a 100-year storm. Under federal requirements, any home built in a flood zone after 1974 must be built to base flood elevation. There is a Flood Insurance Rate Map in effect for New Jersey, which remains in effect and determines the elevations required for building in flood zones, and the expected potential for flooding in each neighborhood. The ABFE map does not replace the current rate map, but is an indication of what changes may be coming in the near future, according to FEMA officials.
FEMA began working on the new rate maps for the region in 2009, according to officials. They are expected to be delivered sometime in 2013. The existing maps are about 25 years old, and federal officials say they are out of date, but the new maps haven?t been finalized.
Once the new maps are delivered, there will be a public comment portion, and they will most likely not be in effect until 2014 at the earliest, according to McDonnell.
In the meantime, homeowners and towns can use the ?advisory? flood elevations to begin reconstruction. FEMA officials say something similar was done for the Gulf Coast after Katrina in 2005. That meant higher homes, and safer reconstruction, according to the federal agency.
It can also mean a greater expense for homeowners.
For now, the ABFE does not have the force of law, and will not affect flood insurance rates. It will be up to each town to adopt the ABFE. However, McDonnell said, no FEMA grants will go to those towns that do not adopt the ABFE.
In Ocean City, City Council is considering increasing the required height of the first habitable floor from a foot above base flood elevation to two feet. Floors set a foot above the expected height of the 100-year flood have been the standard in New Jersey.
That means the new maps could impact the height of future construction.
The ABFE also includes an expansion of the V zone, or velocity zone, to include areas of the lagoons and bayfronts. The V zone is at high risk for flooding and damage from waves, and has typically been associated with the beachfront east of the bulkhead. The federal definition indicates the V zone could see a 3-foot breaking wave in a 100-year storm.
The map includes neighborhoods along the bay in Sea Isle City, Avalon, Stone Harbor and the Wildwoods in the V zone.
Most of Cape May County?s beach town neighborhoods remain in the A zone, which mean there is a risk of flooding, but high velocity waves would not be expected.
The V zone, as shown, extends along the beach on the Delaware Bay in North Cape May, but does not extend past the beachfront. The map does not indicate other bayfront communities are in a flood zone, such as Villas in Lower Township or Reed?s Beach in Middle.
Some areas of the barrier islands will see no change in the advisory maps, with most areas remaining in the A zone with a base flood elevation of nine or 10 feet.
Towns that rebuild to the more stringent standards stand a better chance of escaping damage in future storms, according to McDonnell. He also said those that meet flood protection guidelines will see savings in their flood insurance costs in the future.
For more details of the ABFEs, including links to an interactive map, see www.region2coastal.com.?
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