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City staff, state officials warn draft floodplain maps could expand pluvial flood zones; Hutchinson plans preemptive projects
Summary
Hutchinson staff and Kansas mapping officials told the council that draft floodplain maps now under development may substantially expand areas shown as at risk from surface (pluvial) flooding. City engineers outlined near-term self-perform projects and requested resources to validate consultant models and pursue mitigation grants.
City engineering staff and state floodplain mapping officials briefed the Hutchinson City Council July 15 on a statewide floodplain update that may add new surface-flooding areas for the city and on steps the city can take now to reduce mapped risk.
City Engineer Evan Patterson said draft maps the state is preparing show materially more area in the floodplain than the 2021 maps and urged validation of the consultant models. “The previews we've seen are as if someone had thrown a tomato at the old map, and the splatter was the areas that are now in the floodplain,” Patterson told the council.
Joanna Wolf, floodplain mapping coordinator at…
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