The legislature of the state has, in the Flood Control Insurance
Act, Texas Water Code, section 16.315, delegated the responsibility
to local governmental units to adopt regulations designed to minimize
flood losses. Therefore, the city does ordain as follows.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-1)
(a)
The
flood hazard areas of the city are subject to periodic inundation,
which results in loss of life and property, health and safety hazards,
disruption of commerce and governmental services, and extraordinary
public expenditures for flood protection and relief, all of which
adversely affect the public health, safety and general welfare.
(b)
These
flood losses are created by the cumulative effect of obstructions
in floodplains which cause an increase in flood heights and velocities,
and by the occupancy of flood hazard areas by uses vulnerable to floods
and hazardous to other lands because they are inadequately elevated,
floodproofed or otherwise protected from flood damage.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-2)
It is the purpose of this article to promote the public health,
safety and general welfare and to minimize public and private losses
due to flood conditions in specific areas by provisions designed to:
(1)
Protect
human life and health;
(2)
Minimize
expenditure of public money for costly flood control projects;
(3)
Minimize
the need for rescue and relief efforts associated with flooding and
generally undertaken at the expense of the general public;
(4)
Minimize
prolonged business interruptions;
(5)
Minimize
damage to public facilities and utilities such as water and gas mains,
electric, telephone and sewer lines, streets and bridges located in
floodplains;
(6)
Help
maintain a stable tax base by providing for the sound use and development
of floodprone areas in such a manner as to minimize future flood blight
areas; and
(7)
Insure
that potential buyers are notified that property is in a flood area.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-3)
In order to accomplish its purposes, this article uses the following
methods:
(1)
Restrict
or prohibit uses that are dangerous to health, safety or property
in times of flood, or cause excessive increases in flood heights or
velocities;
(2)
Require
that uses vulnerable to floods, including facilities which serve such
uses, be protected against flood damage at the time of initial construction;
(3)
Control
the alteration of natural floodplains, stream channels, and natural
protective barriers, which are involved in the accommodation of floodwaters;
(4)
Control
filling, grading, dredging and other development which may increase
flood damage;
(5)
Prevent
or regulate the construction of flood barriers which will unnaturally
divert floodwaters or which may increase flood hazards to other lands.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-4)
Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in
this article shall be interpreted to give them the meaning they have
in common usage and to give this article its most reasonable application.
means flooding occurring on the surface of an alluvial fan
or similar landform which originates at the apex and is characterized
by high-velocity flows; active processes of erosion, sediment transport,
and deposition; and unpredictable flow paths.
means a point on an alluvial fan or similar landform below
which the flow path of the major stream that formed the fan becomes
unpredictable and alluvial fan flooding can occur.
means a structure which is on the same parcel of property
as the principal structure to be insured and the use of which is incidental
to the use of the principal structure.
means the land area that would be inundated by the one percent
annual chance (100-year) flood based on future conditions hydrology.
means a designated AO, AH, AR/AO, AR/AH, or VO zone on a
community’s flood insurance rate map (FIRM) with a one percent
or greater annual chance of flooding to an average depth of one (1)
to three (3) 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.
is the land in the floodplain within a community subject
to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year.
The area may be designated as zone A on the flood hazard boundary
map (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, A99, AR, AR/A1-30, AR/AE, AR/AO, AR/AH, AR/A,
VO, V1-30, VE or V.
means the flood having a one percent chance of being equaled
or exceeded in any given year.
means the elevation shown on the flood insurance rate map
(FIRM) and found in the accompanying flood insurance study (FIS) for
zones A, AE, AH, A1-A30, AR, V1-V30, or VE that indicates the water
surface elevation resulting from the flood that has a one percent
chance of equaling or exceeding that level in any given year. Also
called the base flood.
means any area of the building having its floor subgrade
(below ground level) on all sides.
means 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 system.
means an integral and readily identifiable part of a flood
protection system, without which the flood protection provided by
the entire system would be compromised.
means any man-made change to improved and unimproved real
estate, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures,
mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling
operations or storage of equipment or materials.
means, for insurance purposes, a nonbasement building, which
has its lowest elevated floor raised above ground level by foundation
walls, shear walls, posts, piers, pilings, or columns.
means, for the purposes of determining rates, structures
for which the “start of construction” commenced before
the effective date of the FIRM or before January 1, 1975, for FIRMs
effective before that date. “Existing construction” may
also be referred to as “existing structures.”
means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the
construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured
homes are to be affixed (including, at a minimum, the installation
of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading
or the pouring of concrete pads) is completed before the effective
date of the floodplain management regulations adopted by a community.
means the preparation of additional sites by the construction
of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes
are to be affixed (including the installation of utilities, the construction
of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete
pads).
means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete
inundation of normally dry land areas from:
means 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.
means an official map of a community, on which the Federal
Emergency Management Agency has delineated both the special flood
hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.
See “Flood elevation study.”
means any land area susceptible to being inundated by water
from any source (see definition of flooding).
means the operation of an overall program of corrective and
preventive measures for reducing flood damage, including, but not
limited to, emergency preparedness plans, flood control works and
floodplain management regulations.
means zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building
codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as a floodplain
ordinance, grading ordinance and erosion control ordinance) and other
applications of police power. The term describes such state or local
regulations, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for
the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.
means any combination of structural and nonstructural additions,
changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood
damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary
facilities, structures and their contents.
means those physical structural works for which funds have
been authorized, appropriated, and expended and which have been constructed
specifically to modify flooding in order to reduce the extent of the
area within a community subject to a “special flood hazard”
and the extent of the depths of associated flooding. Such a system
typically includes hurricane tidal barriers, dams, reservoirs, levees
or dikes. These specialized flood-modifying works are those constructed
in conformance with sound engineering standards.
See “Regulatory floodway.”
means 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 facilities, port facilities that are necessary
for the loading and unloading of cargo or passengers, and ship building
and ship repair facilities, but does not include long-term storage
or related manufacturing facilities.
means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface
prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
means any structure that is:
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;
Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the
Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered
historic district or a district preliminarily determined by the Secretary
to qualify as a registered historic district;
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
Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places
in communities with historic preservation programs that have been
certified either:
means a man-made structure, usually an earthen embankment,
designed and constructed in accordance with sound engineering practices
to contain, control, or divert the flow of water so as to provide
protection from temporary flooding.
means a flood protection system which consists of a levee,
or levees, and associated structures, such as closure and drainage
devices, which are constructed and operated in accordance with sound
engineering practices.
means 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 non-elevation design requirement of
section 60.3 of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations.
means a structure transportable in one (1) 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.
The term “manufactured home” does not include a “recreational
vehicle.”
means a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into
two (2) or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
means, for purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program,
the North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) of 1988 or other datum, to
which base flood elevations shown on a community’s flood insurance
rate map are referenced.
means, for the purpose of determining insurance rates, structures
for which the “start of construction” commenced on or
after the effective date of an initial FIRM or after December 31,
1974, whichever is later, and includes any subsequent improvements
to such structures. For floodplain management purposes, “new
construction” means structures for which the “start of
construction” commenced on or after the effective date of a
floodplain management regulation adopted by a community and includes
any subsequent improvements to such structures.
means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the
construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured
homes are to be affixed (including, at a minimum, the installation
of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading
or the pouring of concrete pads) is completed on or after the effective
date of floodplain management regulations adopted by a community.
means a vehicle which is:
Built on a single chassis;
Four hundred (400) square feet or less when measured at the
largest horizontal projections;
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.
means 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 cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation
more than a designated height.
means relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including
tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
See “Area of special flood hazard.”
(for other than new construction or substantial improvements
under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (Pub. L. 97-348)), includes
substantial improvement and means the date the building permit was
issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction,
rehabilitation, addition, placement, or other improvement was within
one hundred eighty (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 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. For a substantial improvement,
the actual start of construction means the first alteration of any
wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, whether
or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building.
means, for floodplain management purposes, a walled and roofed
building, including a gas or liquid storage tank, that is principally
above ground, as well as a manufactured home.
means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby
the cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition
would equal or exceed fifty (50) percent of the market value of the
structure before the damage occurred.
means any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other
improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds fifty
(50) percent of the market value of the structure before “start
of construction” of the improvement. This term includes structures
which have incurred “substantial damage,” regardless of
the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include
either:
Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing
violations of state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications
which have been identified by the local code enforcement official
and which are the minimum 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.”
means a grant of relief by a community from the terms of
a floodplain management regulation. (For full requirements see section
60.6 of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations.)
means the failure of a structure or other development to
be fully compliant with the community’s floodplain management
regulations. A structure or other development without the elevation
certificate, other certifications, or other evidence of compliance
required in section 60.3(b)(5), (c)(4), (c)(10), (d)(3), (e)(2), (e)(4),
or (e)(5) [of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations] is
presumed to be in violation until such time as that documentation
is provided.
means the height, in relation to the North American Vertical
Datum (NAVD) of 1988 (or other datum, where specified), of floods
of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains of coastal
or riverine areas.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-5)
This article shall apply to all areas of special flood hazard
within the jurisdiction of the city.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-6)
The areas of special flood hazard identified by the Federal
Emergency Management Agency in the current scientific and engineering
report entitled “The Flood Insurance Study (FIS) for Lamar County,
Texas and Incorporated Areas,” dated August 16, 2011, with flood
insurance rate map (FIRM), dated August 16, 2011, and any revisions
thereto are hereby adopted by reference and declared to be a part
of this article.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-7)
A floodplain development permit shall be required to ensure
conformance with the provisions of this article.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-8)
No structure or land shall hereafter be located, altered, or
have its use changed without full compliance with the terms of this
article and other applicable regulations.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-9)
This article is not intended to repeal, abrogate, or impair
any existing easements, covenants, or deed restrictions. However,
where this article and another ordinance, easement, covenant, or deed
restriction conflict or overlap, whichever imposes the more stringent
restrictions shall prevail.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-10)
In the interpretation and application of this article, all provisions
shall be:
(1)
Considered
as minimum requirements;
(2)
Liberally
construed in favor of the governing body; and
(3)
Deemed
neither to limit nor repeal any other powers granted under state statutes.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-11)
The degree of flood protection required by this article is considered
reasonable for regulatory purposes and is based on scientific and
engineering considerations. On rare occasions greater floods can and
will occur and flood heights may be increased by man-made or natural
causes. This article does not imply that land outside the areas of
special flood hazards or uses permitted within such areas will be
free from flooding or flood damages. This article shall not create
liability on the part of the community or any official or employee
thereof for any flood damages that result from reliance on this article
or any administrative decision lawfully made hereunder.
(Ordinance 2011-024, sec. 3, adopted 7/25/11; 1988 Code, sec. 13-12)
