A Suwannee River Water Management District representative told the High Springs City Commission that residents and officials should attend a July 1 flood-risk review meeting in Bronson covering updated flood maps for the Wacassassa (Wakassasah) watershed, which touches parts of Alachua, Gilchrist and Levy counties.

Mary Diaz of the Suwannee River Water Management District told commissioners the meeting will explain how updated flood maps were developed, show changes between old and new maps, and let attendees submit comments at the flood-risk review stage without engineering documentation. Diaz warned that once maps go to the preliminary stage, challenges generally require engineering backup. She emphasized the importance of early comment for property owners and developers.

Diaz summarized the timeline and regulatory context: responsible entities must submit additional projects and management strategies to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) by Jan. 14, 2026, to comply with a Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP) milestone or face potential departmental enforcement. She described flood zones shown in the presentation, noting the 1% annual-chance flood (historically called the 100-year flood), the X zone with flood depths less than 1 foot, and the 0.2% annual-chance (500-year) zone. Diaz said the district’s data show no new buildings in the City of High Springs are being added to the 1% flood zone in this update, but other property changes may still affect owners’ decisions.

The district will provide slide decks, watershed dashboards and a recording after the meeting; staff will be available at the event to review parcels and file comments on behalf of residents who cannot attend. Diaz brought flyers and a QR code directing residents to the map and comment tool. She said the flood-risk review meeting had been rescheduled to July 1 after a pause earlier in the spring to coordinate with FEMA and cooperating technical partners.

Commissioners expressed interest in having an official city representative attend the Bronson meeting. Diaz encouraged attendance by city officials and residents and said the district typically remains at meetings until late in the evening to meet one-on-one with citizens.