Board of County Commissioners public hearing for proposed Floodplain Map and Code Amendments – Tuesday, May 16

By | May 11, 2017
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For Immediate Release

May 9, 2017
Media Contact
Andrew Barth, Transportation Communications, 303-441-1032Erin Cooper, Transportation Floodplain Specialist, 720-564-2866

Staff Recommendation to the BOCC is available online.  

Boulder County, Colo. – Boulder County Transportation and the State of Colorado have completed the technical review and public outreach period for the draft floodplain maps developed by the Colorado Hazard Mapping Program (CHAMP) for ‘Phase 1’ major stream corridors in areas of unincorporated Boulder County.

Public Hearing

What:   Board of County Commissioners Public Hearing
When:  Tuesday, May 16, 2 p.m.
Where: Boulder County Courthouse, 325 Pearl St., third floor, Boulder (map)

Public testimony will be taken.

Staff will present the following:

  • Land Use Code (the “Code”) text amendments to amend the County’s floodplain regulations, codified in Articles 4-400 et seq.; and
  • Zoning map amendments for the Floodplain Overlay District (“FO District”), specifically the Boulder County Floodplain and Floodway, based upon the floodplain remapping of the Colorado Hazard Mapping Project (“CHAMP”), Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) Risk MAP and other best available data.

Action Requested from Board of County Commissioners: Approval of staff recommended floodplain zoning map and Land Use Code text amendments.

Background

At a public hearing on April 19, the Boulder County Planning Commission approved and recommended to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) approval of adoption of these draft floodplain maps for local regulatory purposes. A public hearing will be held before the BOCC at 2 p.m. on May 16 to request their approval of this proposed adoption.

Staff is also seeking approval from the BOCC for proposed changes to the floodplain regulations in Article 4-400 of the Boulder County Land Use Code. These code amendments focus on clarifying existing processes for adopting new floodplain data into the County’s Floodplain Overlay District consisting of both locally adopted best available data, such as CHAMP, and FEMA FIRMs. Regulating to accurate best available floodplain studies and maps are a key component of the County’s floodplain management program, which seeks to protect the health, safety, and welfare of Boulder County residents in the event of future flood events.

The proposed zoning map and code amendments are an important step in Phase 1 of the remapping project. Boulder County has worked closely with the State of Colorado to ensure that the new maps reflect local conditions since the September 2013 flood, which changed the physical features of waterways throughout the county. The revised floodplain mapping produced by the State of Colorado through CHAMP will go through an additional public appeal period before ultimately being adopted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). There will be no impact on flood insurance rates until that time.

Additional information, including the Staff Recommendation and the Commissioners’ agenda, is available on the Land Use docket webpage. The meeting will be live-streamed via the Public Meetings, Hearings, Records, & Video Archives page.

For additional details about this hearing, contact Erin Cooper, Boulder County Transportation Department, at escooper@bouldercounty.org or 720-564-2866.

Visit www.BoCoFloodplainRemapping.com for more information.