§ 28-51. General standards.

(a)

No permit for floodplain development shall be granted for new construction, substantial improvements, and other improvements as regulated by this chapter, including the placement of manufactured homes, within any numbered or unnumbered A zones, AE, AO, and AH zones, unless the conditions of this section are satisfied.

(b)

All areas identified as unnumbered A zones on the FIRM are subject to inundation of the 100-year flood; however, the base flood elevation is not provided. Development within unnumbered A zones is subject to all provisions of this chapter. If flood insurance study data is not available, the community shall obtain, review, and reasonably utilize any base flood elevation or floodway data currently available from federal, state, or other sources.

(c)

Until a floodway is designated, no new construction, substantial improvements, or other development, including fill, shall be permitted within any numbered A zone or AE zone on the FIRM, unless it is demonstrated that the cumulative effect of the proposed development, when combined with all other existing and anticipated development, will not increase the water surface elevation of the base flood more than one foot at any point within the community.

(d)

All new construction, subdivision proposals, substantial improvements, prefabricated structures, placement of manufactured homes (requirements as applicable per section 28-53, and other developments shall require:

(1)

Design or adequate anchorage to prevent flotation, collapse, or lateral movement of the structure resulting from hydrodynamic and hydrostatic loads, including the effects of buoyancy;

(2)

Construction with materials resistant to flood damage;

(3)

Utilization of methods and practices that minimize flood damages;

(4)

All electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, air-conditioning equipment, and other service facilities be designed and/or located so as to prevent water from entering or accumulating within the components during conditions of flooding;

(5)

New or replacement water supply systems and/or sanitary sewage systems be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems and discharges from the systems into flood waters, and on-site waste disposal systems be located so as to avoid impairment or contamination; and

(6)

Subdivision proposals and other proposed new development, including manufactured home parks or subdivisions, located within special flood hazard areas are required to assure that:

a.

All such proposals are consistent with the need to minimize flood damage;

b.

All public utilities and facilities, such as sewer, gas, electrical, and water systems are located and constructed to minimize or eliminate flood damage;

c.

Adequate drainage is provided so as to reduce exposure to flood hazards; and

d.

All proposals for development, including proposals for manufactured home parks and subdivisions include within such proposals base flood elevation data.

(e)

Storage, material, and equipment.

(1)

The storage or processing of materials within the special flood hazard area that are in time of flooding buoyant, flammable, explosive, or could be injurious to human, animal, or plant life is prohibited.

(2)

Storage of other material or equipment may be allowed if not subject to major damage by floods, if firmly anchored to prevent flotation, or if readily removable from the area within the time available after a flood warning.

(f)

Nonconforming use. A structure, or the use of a structure or premises, that was lawful before the passage or amendment of the ordinance, but which is not in conformity with the provisions of this chapter, may be continued subject to the following conditions:

(1)

If such use is discontinued for 12 consecutive months, any future use of the building shall conform to this chapter.

(2)

If any nonconforming use or structure is destroyed by any means, including flood, it shall not be reconstructed if the cost is more than 50 percent of the pre-damaged market value of the structure. This "cost" does not include the cost of any upgrade to the original structure required to comply with existing state or local health, sanitary, building, or safety codes or regulations; or the cost of any reconstruction of a structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the State Inventory of Historic Places, or local inventory of historic places upon determination.

(g)

Accessory structures. Structures used solely for parking and limited storage purposes, not attached to any other structure on the site, of limited investment value, and not larger than 400 square feet, may be constructed at-grade and wet-floodproofed provided there is no human habitation or occupancy of the structure; the structure is of single-wall design; a variance has been granted from the standard floodplain management requirements of this chapter; and a floodplain development permit has been issued.

(h)

Hazardous materials. All hazardous material storage and handling sites shall be located out of the floodplain.

(i)

Cumulative improvement. A structure may be improved (remodeled or enlarged) without conforming to current requirements for elevation so long as the cumulative value of all work done within the last five calendar years does not exceed 50 percent of the structure's current market value. If the cumulative value of the improvement exceeds 50 percent of the structure's current market value, the structure must be brought into compliance with the requirements of this chapter for substantial improvements.

(j)

Critical facilities.

(1)

All new or substantially improved critical nonresidential facilities including, but not limited, to governmental buildings, police stations, fire stations, hospitals, orphanages, penal institutions, communication centers, water and sewer pumping stations, water and sewer treatment facilities, transportation maintenance facilities, places of public assembly, emergency aviation facilities, and schools shall be elevated above the 500-year flood level or together with attendant utility and sanitary facilities, be floodproofed so that below the 500-year flood level the structure is water tight with walls substantially impermeable to the passage of water and with structural components having the capability of resisting hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads and the effects of buoyancy. A registered professional engineer or architect shall certify that the standards of this subsection are satisfied. Such certification shall be provided to the floodplain administrator as set forth in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) regulations.

(2)

All critical facilities shall have access routes that are above the elevation of the 500-year flood.

(k)

Agricultural structures. Structures used solely for agricultural purposes in connection with the production, harvesting, storage, drying, or raising of agricultural commodities, including the raising of livestock, may be constructed at-grade and wet-floodproofed provided there is no human habitation or occupancy of the structure; the structure is of single-wall design; there is no permanent retail, wholesale, or manufacturing use included in the structure; a variance has been granted from the floodplain management requirements of this chapter; and a floodplain development permit has been issued.

(Ord. No. 160928 , § 1, 12-15-16)