Arapahoe County commissioners back updated hazard mitigation plan to move forward pending FEMA review

Arapahoe County emergency management staff briefed commissioners on an updated countywide hazard mitigation plan and received the board's approval to move the document forward for final adoption once state and FEMA reviews are complete.

Ash Capella, Deputy Director of Emergency Management, said the update was a comprehensive, five‑year revision covering hazards likely to affect the county and the mitigation actions that would reduce community risk. "So the plan itself was a comprehensive plan where we cover everything in the county," Capella said, noting the draft totals roughly 400 pages.

The plan, Capella said, builds on the county's 2020 plan and the state hazard mitigation plan, and it narrows focus to hazards with local data and credibility. Staff ran a public survey and received responses from more than 400 residents, which Capella told the board informed priorities such as wildfire mitigation, water conservation and critical‑facility resiliency. "Over 400 community members took our survey," she said.

Capella explained the review path: the county submits the draft to the state for review and then to FEMA. After FEMA issues an "approval pending adoption" letter, a formal adoption resolution by the Board of County Commissioners will make the plan final and start the five‑year clock for the next update. Capella told the board that some mitigation actions may be implemented by partner jurisdictions or special districts and therefore appear in the plan as partner responsibilities.

Commissioners asked how the plan links to departmental capital programs, how public health is engaged, and what obligations the plan creates. Capella said many mitigation actions already come from departments' capital plans (roads, open space, stormwater) and that public health participated as a planning partner with its own mitigation actions for pandemics and public‑education efforts.

After discussion, commissioners offered a procedural approval: they authorized staff to move the draft to the consent calendar contingent on FEMA's approval rather than adopting the plan immediately. The county will await any state or FEMA‑requested edits before the adoption resolution is brought back to the board.

Next steps: staff will complete any minor changes from state review, submit the plan to FEMA, and — if FEMA issues its approval pending adoption — return to the board with a resolution for formal adoption.