NOVEMBER 4, 2024|
Photo – FEMA flood map of Rawlins – Courtesy City of Rawlins
The Rawlins city government unveiled the newly adopted FEMA flood plain map.
For the past eight years, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, has been updating flood plain maps across the country to raise more money for the bankrupt federal government. FEMA is now demanding that municipalities formally adopt new flood zone maps or be excluded from future disaster assistance funding. Properties once outside of the flood plain are now considered at risk of a 100-year flood, which requires homeowners within the newly expanded flood zone with federally backed mortgages to purchase flood insurance.
FEMA’s new maps put more areas of Rawlins in the flood plain, specifically the roughly 385 properties along Sugar Creek on the south side of the city. Speaking at the October 1st special work session, City Manager Sarvey said he does not agree with the federal agency’s findings. However, Sarvey said failure to formally adopt the FEMA flood maps may exclude the city from federal funding opportunities.
The Rawlins city council began the process of formally adopting the new FEMA flood maps at their October 15th meeting. Members of the governing body voiced their opposition to the federal government’s findings, stating that adding additional properties into the flood zone will hurt residents who are now forced to purchase flood insurance.
Mayor Terry Weickum said he considered not adopting the ordinance. In the end, the mayor said the city must comply with FEMA to ensure continued access to federal funding.
On Friday afternoon, the city released the finalized flood plain map along with a series of questions and answers explaining what is being done to combat FEMA’s plan to expand the flood zone.
A section of the Rawlins website titled, “What has the city done about the new floodplain?” explains that in 2021, the city hired Engineering Associates for $85,000 to study the floodplain and develop an alternative flood map for FEMA to consider.
Engineering Associates showed that Hogback Lake and Sugar Creek, which saw the most flood plain expansion in the newly adopted FEMA maps, have been accurately mapped. Engineering Associates is continuing to investigate reservoirs and retention walls around the city for errors in the federal government’s analysis.
When Engineering Associates finishes their model, city officials are expecting that enough inconsistencies with the federal map will be identified to justify submitting a Letter of Map Revision to FEMA to reduce the size of the flood zone.
Things aren’t moving as quickly as city officials would like. On its website, the city states that Engineering Associates is working to gain permission from private property owners to access the Hogback Lake Diversion Structure and perform an on-site analysis of the earthen dam located there.
Speaking at the October 15th city council meeting, Mayor Weickum encouraged the public to be patient while the city waits for the engineer’s report.
In the meantime, property owners with federally backed mortgages will be required to purchase flood insurance. According to the Rawlins city website, flood insurance costs average between $500 and $1000 a year, based on the required coverage amount.
Affected homeowners will be contacted directly by their lenders and required to purchase enough flood insurance to cover their loan amount. Additionally, the city will mail letters to owners of properties believed to fall within the floodplain based on a manual review.
The FEMA flood maps will officially go into effect on December 20th.
