Dunn County begins fast-tracked update of county hazard mitigation plan

Dunn County emergency managers and regional planners met by videoconference on a steering committee Thursday to begin updating the county’s federally recognized hazard mitigation plan and to map outreach and data-collection steps needed to complete a draft by December.

The meeting opened at 8:30 a.m. with Jason Spetz, who said, “And we're here for our first steering committee for the hazard mitigation plan update for Dunn County,” and set the steering committee’s immediate tasks: stakeholder interviews, town and school surveys, and a short homework survey for committee members to rank hazards.

The plan update is required to access several federal and state mitigation grant programs. Chris, a regional planner with the regional planning commission, summarized why the county updates the plan every five years and walked the group through FEMA planning guidance, recent changes to that guidance and the grant programs tied to an approved mitigation plan. He told the committee the county’s current plan expires Oct. 26, 2025, and that the consultants and county staff intend to “fast track this” year’s update so cities, villages and schools can pursue mitigation funding.

Why it matters: an up-to-date, FEMA‑approved mitigation plan is a prerequisite for several mitigation grants — including BRIC (Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities), FMA (Flood Mitigation Assistance) and HMGP (Hazard Mitigation Grant Program) — and some state pre‑disaster flood programs. Committee members were told that the plan update will include county-wide analysis plus short, 6–10 page subplans for cities, villages and public educational institutions so each jurisdiction can use the county work when applying for grants.

Discussion and technical context

Chris reviewed the mitigation planning scope and FEMA checklist requirements, noting the 2023 FEMA guidance changes and subsequent tweaks. He said mitigation actions are locally defined but the plan must document risk, event history, probability and vulnerabilities. He described traditional mitigation measures — safe rooms, floodplain zoning, acquisitions and nature‑based flood remedies — and gave examples of recent projects in the region, including a $1.5 million safe room at the Northland Wisconsin State Fairgrounds (about $814,000 grant-funded) and other BRIC/HMGP projects that reduced local out‑of‑pocket costs for host communities.

Chris discussed current uncertainty around BRIC earlier in the year; the county’s plan update contract under BRIC is executed and the consultant recommended incremental drawdowns of grant funds to avoid exposure if federal program rules change. He summarized other funding sources by name: BRIC, FMA, HMGP and a state pre-disaster flood resiliency grant program. He also reviewed FEMA’s National Risk Index outputs for the county and regional public-health hazard vulnerability assessment data, which flagged winter storms, severe thunderstorms and communications interruptions among top concerns.

Outreach, timeline and assignments

The committee set a schedule of stakeholder interviews, city/village meetings in September–October, and school outreach (webinars and online surveys were already underway for several districts). The consultant asked members to complete two short homework items: (1) a brainstorming form listing local issues, projects and “low-hanging fruit,” and (2) a hazard-ranking sheet that scores probability and vulnerability for listed hazards. Committee members were asked to return the hazard-ranking worksheet by the 15th (the consultant later clarified deadlines by email).

Committee members were also asked to help secure town participation, identify local project ideas (flood buyouts, safe rooms, bank stabilization, etc.), and to document time spent on steering‑committee work so that in‑kind hours count toward the grant match. The consultant said he expects to issue draft subplans to participating jurisdictions by October and to complete a full draft for committee review by December.

Concerns and local input

Participants described recent local flooding that washed out roads in Menomonie and routine wind and storm tree damage; no new large-scale disasters or fatalities were reported during the meeting. The group discussed wildfire as a possible plan topic; planners said Dunn County’s landscape shows more risk for grass and WUI (wildland-urban interface) fires in lakeshore neighborhoods and recommended “Firewise”-type practices where applicable rather than a full wildfire remediation program. Public-health officials flagged seasonal influenza and communicable-disease planning as issues that can be linked to but are often handled in parallel to mitigation planning.

Next steps

The consultant asked committee members to complete the homework survey and hazard-ranking form and to help schedule town and school meetings; he said he will follow up with individual interviews and a revised meeting schedule. The committee plans a follow-up meeting in October to review draft subplans, capabilities and potential mitigation strategies.

The steering committee did not take any formal votes during the meeting; members were assigned outreach, data and review tasks to support the plan update and grant-readiness process.

Ending

The county’s mitigation plan update work will continue with targeted outreach and data collection over the coming months. Committee members were told to expect the consultant’s emails with the homework forms, and that staff and the consultant will coordinate interviews and meetings to complete the draft plan before the October 2025 expiration date.