Monday, April 9, 2012

Updated Dunwoody Flood Maps?


The City of Dunwoody is contemplating a change in the stream buffer ordinance and in doing my research I found that all of the communities around us have been updating their FEMA Flood Maps.  Since all of the communities are relying on the same state website, I am guessing that the Dunwoody information on that same website may be correct for us as well?  http://map.georgiadfirm.com

I will be asking City staff for an official update.

Chamblee - Flood Map Update
Sandy Springs - Flood Map Update
Doraville - Flood Map Update
Roswell - Flood Map Update

As far as I can tell FEMA still shows us officially under the 2001 DeKalb Maps. (DeKalb County - no City, then use 13089C0016 as an example, click magnify glass).

10 comments:

Unknown said...

I checked my property since i have a creek behind my house. Are any q&a sessions planned for the public to ask questions?

John Heneghan said...

At the meeting tonight staff Rich Edinger stated that notices were mailed out to homes where the flood zone changed but I asked if public meeting would be following and I believe he said he would look into it. ??

Look for a city announcement in the coming weeks regarding a meeting and if that fails to emerge I will look further into the subject. Thanks.

GaryRayBetz said...

I received one of those letters from the Dunwoody City Engineer. It has the Mayor's name and all the Council persons below his name (i.e. Dunwoody City letterhead) and the most telling line is - "The new Preliminary Floodplain Map indicates that your property at ____ Brookhurst Dr is more impacted by floodplain than was indicated on the previous FIRM map. These new FIRM maps are scheduled to become effective in November 2012."

I went to the Georgia FIRM site listed and generated a report; however, I'm going to have to call the number the Engineer lists on the letter to determine if my property is truly affected as the elements listed in the following fields on the report - Flood Zone, Preliminary Flood Zone, Changes Since Last FIRM, Probability of Flooding are marked as X, X, N/A, & N/A respectively and I don't find this on the legend.

I'll email you my PDF report, if you are interested.

John Heneghan said...

Gary, I am no engineer therefore hold on to your documents and I will get information regarding a meeting where this will be discussed in full. If you are unavailable for the meeting, staff will personally review your situation as they should be available to everyone affected by possible flood zone changes.

Thanks

GaryRayBetz said...

John, no issues. I was just going to call the number on the letter during business hours. I wasn't looking for your assessment, just thought you might be interested as your estate obviously sets on Dunwoody's highest elevation and you didn't receive one of these letters.

I'm very surprised you aren't an engineer. I had you down as the town polymath. I just know the "Smart People" portion of the city motto sure don't apply to me.

Thanks.

Daughter of the Poet said...

River

A delicate fuzz of fog
like mold, or moss,
all across the river
in this early light.
Another day, I might
have still been sleeping.

What a pity. How the stars
and seas and rivers
in their fragile lace of fog
go on without us
morning after morning,
year after year.
And we disappear.

Pat Schneider

GaryRayBetz said...

If the floodplain has changed in Dunwoody and there is confusion even within the city staff regarding this issue, perhaps we need to hold a moratorium on new construction on Dunwoody's green spaces (including the PVC Farm site) until a detailed assessment can be performed regarding watershed and drainage issues.

With more concrete and less green space the ground holds less water and thus runs off - somewhere.

Do we know if construction on the PVC Farm site will incur flooding to the bordering properties?

More green space - less flooding issues.

John Heneghan said...

I was informed by City Staff that a meeting will be scheduled to discuss the Updated Flood Maps, no tentative date as of yet.

Confirmed the following link (http://map.georgiadfirm.com) goes to the flood map modernization program’s GIS web viewer. This is the site the City referred people to in the letter they sent. Was advised the “Preliminary Flood Zone” button in the upper left represents the proposed floodplain limits, and the “Effective Flood Zone” button represents the current floodplain limits. You can toggle between them to see the changes.

GaryRayBetz said...

John, thank-you very much!

As always, you are the epitome of diligence and responsiveness.

John Heneghan said...

The City of Dunwoody Community Development Department would like to invite you to a public meeting that will take place on Thursday, May 17th at 6:30 p.m. in the chapel of Dunwoody Baptist Church, located at 1445 Mount Vernon Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the State of Georgia’s update to the City’s Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) as part of FEMA’s Flood Map Modernization Program.