Ordinance committee forwards zoning update to adopt state floodplain model, update FEMA maps

Vice Mayor Jay McGovern convened the Cambridge Ordinance Committee for a public hearing on a zoning petition to replace the city’s Floodplain Overlay with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) model ordinance, update references to the most recent FEMA maps, and make minor internal edits to Article 5 and Section 20.7 of the zoning ordinance.

Jeff Roberts, director of zoning and development, told the committee the change is primarily procedural and required to keep the city in compliance with updated federal and state flood regulations. “This is more based on a requirement under state and federal law that we need to take care of, and we need to do it in a timely way,” Roberts said, calling the proposal an “obligatory zoning change.”

Roberts and city staff said most substantive technical standards remain the same but the DEP model moves many reviews from discretionary planning-board special permits to an administrative review framework. “The one key difference procedurally is that there would not be a special permit required anymore,” Roberts said, while noting that conservation-commission review and building-code requirements will continue to apply.

James Wilcox, city engineer, said the practical effect is that many projects in the floodplain would no longer require planning-board special-permit hearings but would still file a notice of intent and undergo a public hearing and technical review before the Cambridge Conservation Commission. “So the conservation commissioners will get to review that, ask questions of the applicant, and that we also take public comments at those hearings as well. So, yes, it will be a very public process, so any buyer will be able to see that,” Wilcox said, adding that conservation-commission approvals typically produce an order of conditions and a deed reference that will make a project’s status visible in title records.

Councilor Susie raised procedural and liability concerns, asking whether removing planning-board review could bias decisions toward development and whether developers would be required to notify prospective buyers that a property lies in a floodplain. “If developers are developing in an area known to flood, will they then be responsible for notifying the buyers or the people that are purchasing the properties?” she asked. Wilcox responded that the conservation-commission process and state building-code requirements limit what developers can do and that the public-record and deed references make related approvals visible to buyers.

Roberts said staff has proposed a few technical tweaks—such as retaining existing rules that count above-grade parking in FAR calculations and moving an exemption for setbacks needed for flood-retention systems into Article 5—while preserving the substantive review criteria. He also said the zoning petition as filed referenced map panels with an effective date that must be corrected; staff will update the petition to reference FEMA maps effective 07/08/2025 and submit revised language before the council vote.

A Conservation Commission representative said the commission comprises seven volunteer members and two associates who will receive training and have been kept apprised of the ordinance changes and the underlying mapping (six FEMA panels and a 15-volume flood insurance study).

Councilor Nolan said he supported the update and urged the city to accelerate related resilience work, including addressing combined sewer overflows and protecting critical infrastructure. Councilor Susie echoed those resilience concerns and urged coordination with Eversource to protect an electrical substation she said could be vulnerable in major flooding events.

On a motion by Councilor Nolan to forward a favorable recommendation of the amended language to the full Council, the committee held a roll-call vote and recorded seven yes votes and two absences; the motion carried. The committee then voted to adjourn.

What’s next: staff will correct the referenced FEMA map effective date to 07/08/2025 and file revised petition language with the full City Council; the item will proceed to Council for final consideration.