Monroe County is expecting a new set of preliminary FEMA flood maps after years of waiting for federal officials to respond to an appeal filed by the county and several municipalities.
Emily Schemper, Monroe County’s director of growth management, joined Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM yesterday morning to talk about what’s going on in the county.
The latest development follows a lengthy process that began in 2014, when FEMA started updating its flood studies, flood-risk assessments and storm-surge analysis for South Florida.
The process eventually resulted in FEMA issuing preliminary flood maps in December 2019. Those maps are important to property owners because they help determine flood zones, elevation requirements and other flood-related building requirements.
Schemper said Monroe County, along with Marathon, Key West and Key Colony Beach, submitted an appeal in June 2021 after reviewing the preliminary maps.
The county has been waiting for FEMA’s response ever since.
In July, FEMA sent the county and the three municipalities a letter requesting additional information. Schemper initially said the language in the letter was somewhat unclear, but she recently received clarification from FEMA.
“The main takeaway here is they are working on it,” Schemper said. “There are still new maps coming.”
However, Schemper said the maps currently being considered will not simply become the final maps.
“The two sets of maps we’ve been looking at as potential final maps for the last four years, five years, neither of those is anticipated to become the final maps,” she said. “We’re going to get a new set.”
According to Schemper, FEMA has agreed to accept some of the data included in Monroe County’s appeal submission. FEMA will use that information to revise the preliminary maps.
That means the process will essentially move back to an earlier stage, with another flood-risk review before FEMA issues a new set of preliminary maps.
Schemper said the county’s consultant is working with FEMA and the municipalities on the additional information FEMA requested. The consultant has until mid-October to provide that information.
It remains unclear exactly how the new maps will differ from the current and previously proposed maps.
“I do not have an answer to that yet,” Schemper said.
Monroe County currently has an online application that allows property owners to compare three sets of maps: the existing flood maps, FEMA’s previous preliminary maps and the appeal maps submitted by the county.
Schemper cautioned that the second and third sets shown in the comparison tool are no longer expected to become the final maps.
The application can be found at the Monroe County website by going to the Building Department, Floodplain Management section and selecting the page titled “New Preliminary Coastal Flood Maps.”
Once FEMA issues the new preliminary maps, Schemper said there should be another opportunity for public input.
She expects FEMA to hold additional public meetings, followed by a new 90-day appeal period.
Individuals, as well as local governments, will be able to submit appeals during that period.
Schemper said the county has previously tried to incorporate concerns raised by individual property owners into its own appeal because the process involves significant technical information.
The potential changes are particularly important for property owners because flood maps can affect building requirements and, potentially, insurance.
Schemper said the previous preliminary maps would have resulted in elevation requirements changing by an average of about two feet for properties, although she noted that a change in the measurement datum also has to be considered.
For some properties, the proposed requirements could actually have become less restrictive. However, Schemper said the majority of properties would have faced somewhat more stringent elevation requirements.
She also said homes constructed before the new maps become law could become lawfully nonconforming with Monroe County’s flood regulations, which could have implications for insurance.
“Try to plan ahead,” Schemper said, particularly advising people who are building new homes to consider additional elevation.
For now, however, property owners will have to wait for FEMA to complete its revised maps before knowing exactly what changes could be coming.
Schemper said the county expects to learn more as its consultant works through FEMA’s latest request for information.
She emphasized that neither the existing preliminary maps nor Monroe County’s appeal maps should be viewed as the final product.
A new set of preliminary FEMA flood maps is expected to give Monroe County property owners another opportunity to review how their properties could be affected.