[Adopted 3-8-1975 ATM by Art. 10]
The Town agrees to participate in the National Flood Insurance
Program by directing the Board of Selectmen to complete the eligibility
application and submit the required information to the Federal Insurance
Administration.
[Adopted 3-8-1988 ATM; amended in its entirety 3-11-1997 OTE by Art. 4]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
AREA OF SHALLOW FLOODING
A designated AO or AHD Zone on a community's Flood Insurance
Rate Map (FIRM) with a 1% or greater annual chance of flooding to
an average depth of one to three feet, where a clearly defined channel
does not exist, where the path of flooding is unpredictable and where
velocity flow may be evident. Such flooding is characterized by ponding
or sheet flow.
AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD
The land in the floodplain within a community subject to
a 1% or greater chance of flooding in any given year. The area may
be designated as Zone A on the FHBM. After detailed rate making has
been completed in preparation for publication of the FIRM, Zone A
usually is refined into Zones A, AO, AH, A1-30, AE or A99.
BASE FLOOD
The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded
in any given year.
BASEMENT
Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below
ground level) on all sides.
BREAKAWAY WALL
A wall that is not part of the structural support of the
building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse
under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage to the
elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation.
DEVELOPMENT
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate,
including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining,
dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations.
FEMA
The Federal Emergency Management Agency.
FLOOD BOUNDARY AND FLOODWAY MAP (FLOODWAY)
An official map of the community, on which the Federal Emergency
Management Agency has delineated the regulatory floodway. This map
should not be used to determine the correct flood hazard zone or base
flood elevation; the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) will be used
to make determinations of flood hazard zones and base flood elevations.
FLOOD ELEVATION STUDY
An examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards
and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations, or an
examination, evaluation and determination of mudslide (i.e., mudflow)
and/or flood-related erosion hazards.
FLOOD or FLOODING
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete
inundation of normally dry land areas from:
A.
The overflow of inland or tidal waters; or
B.
The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters
from any source.
FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM)
An official map of a community, incorporated with this article,
on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delineated both
the special hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to
the community.
FLOODPROOFING
Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions,
changes, or adjustments to structures which reduces or eliminates
flood damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary
facilities, structures and their contents.
FUNCTIONALLY DEPENDENT USE
A use which cannot perform its intended purpose unless it
is located or carried out in close proximity to water. The term includes
only docking and port facilities that are necessary for the loading/unloading
of cargo or passengers, and ship building/repair facilities but does
not include long-term storage or related manufacturing facilities.
HIGHEST ADJACENT GRADE
The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior
to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
HISTORIC STRUCTURE
Any structure that is:
A.
Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places
(a listing maintained by the Department of the Interior) or preliminarily
determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the requirements
for individual listing on the National Register.
B.
Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the
Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered
historic district or district preliminarily determined by the Secretary
to qualify as a registered historic district;
C.
Individually listed on a state inventory of historic places
in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved
by the Secretary of the interior; or
D.
Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places
in communities with historic preservation programs that have been
certified either:
(1)
By an approved state program as determined by the Secretary
of the Interior; or
(2)
Directly by the Secretary of the Interior in states without
approved programs.
LOWEST FLOOR
The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement).
An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, usable solely for parking
of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than a basement
area, is not considered a building's lowest floor, provided that
such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation
of the applicable nonelevation design requirements of this article.
MANUFACTURED HOME
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without
a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. For
floodplain management purposes, the term "manufactured home" also
includes park trailers, travel trailers, and other similar vehicles
placed on a site for greater than 180 consecutive days.
MEAN SEA LEVEL
For purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the
National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929 or other datum, to
which base flood elevations shown on a community's Flood Insurance
Rate Map are referenced.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE
A vehicle which is built on a single chassis; 400 square
feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection; designed
to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty truck;
and designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel or seasonal
use.
REGULATORY FLOODWAY
The channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent
land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood
without increasing the water surface elevation. These areas are designated
as floodways on the Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps.
RIVERINE
Relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including
tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREA
An area having special flood, mudslide (i.e., mudflow) and/or
flood-related erosion hazards, and shown on an FHBM or FIRM as Zone
A, AO, A1-30, AE, A99, and AH. (See "area of special flood hazard.")
START OF CONSTRUCTION
Includes substantial improvement, and means the date the
building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction,
repair, reconstruction, placement, or other improvement was within
180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either the first
placement of permanent construction of a structure on a site such
as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the
construction of columns, or any work beyond the stage of excavation;
or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent
construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing,
grading and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets
and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for a basement, footings,
piers, or foundations or the erection of temporary forms; nor does
it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings,
such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not part
of the main structure.
STRUCTURE
For floodplain management purposes, a walled and rooted building,
including a gas or liquid storage tank, that is principally aboveground,
as well as a manufactured home.
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred.
SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT
Any combination of repairs, reconstruction, alteration, or
improvements to a structure in which the cumulative cost equals or
exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure. The market value
of the structure should be the appraised value of the structure prior
to the start of the initial repair or improvement, or in the case
of damage, the value of the structure prior to the damage occurring.
For the purposes of this definition, "substantial improvement" is
considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling,
floor, or other structural part of the building commences, whether
or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the structure.
This term includes structures which have incurred substantial damage,
regardless of actual repair work performed. The term does not, however,
include any project or improvement of a structure required to comply
with existing health, sanitary, or safety code specifications which
are solely necessary to assure safe living conditions or any alteration
of a historic structure, provided that the alteration will not preclude
the structure's continued designation as a historic structure.
WATER SURFACE ELEVATION
The height, in relation to the National Geodetic Vertical
Datum (NGVD) of 1929, (or other datum, where specified) of floods
of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains.
All proposed development in any special flood hazard areas shall
require a permit.
The Building Inspector shall review all building permit applications
for new construction or substantial improvements to determine whether
proposed building sites will be reasonably safe from flooding. If
a proposed building site is in a flood-prone area, all new construction
and substantial improvements shall be designed (or modified) and adequately
anchored to prevent flotation, collapse, or lateral movement of the
structure resulting from hydrodynamic and hydrostatic loads, including
the effects of buoyancy; be constructed with materials resistant to
flood damage; be constructed by methods and practices that minimize
flood damages; and be constructed with electrical, heating, ventilation,
plumbing, and air conditioning equipment and other service facilities
that are designed and/or located so as to prevent water from entering
or accumulating within the components during conditions of flooding.
Where new and replacement water and sewer systems (including
on-site systems) are proposed in flood prone areas, the applicant
shall provide the Building Inspector with assurance that new and replacement
sanitary sewage systems will be designed to minimize or eliminate
infiltration of floodwaters into the systems and discharges from the
systems into floodwater, and on-site waste disposal systems will be
located to avoid impairment to them or contamination from them during
periods of flooding.
For all new or substantially improved structures located in
Zones A, A1-30, AE or AH, the applicant shall furnish the following
information to the Building Inspector:
A. The as-built elevation (in relation to NGVD) of the lowest floor
(including basement) and include whether or not such structures contain
a basement;
B. If the structure has been floodproofed, the as-built elevation (in
relation to NGVD) to which the structure was floodproofed; and
C. Any certification of floodproofing.
The Building Inspector shall not grant a building permit until
the applicant certifies that all necessary permits have been received
from those governmental agencies from which approval is required by
Federal or State Law, including Section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act Amendments of 1972, 33 U.S.C. 1334.