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Planner warns New Haven to update flood-hazard bylaws before new FEMA maps take effect
Summary
An ACRPC emergency management planner told the Planning Commission that draft FEMA flood maps are expected to be official in fall 2028 and recommended adopting the 2022 Vermont model flood-hazard bylaws and the state’s River Corridor bylaws to maintain local eligibility in the National Flood Insurance Program.
Andrew L’Roe, Emergency Management Planner with the Addison County Regional Planning Commission, presented draft FEMA floodplain maps that ACRPC expects to become official in fall 2028 and highlighted consequences for towns that do not update zoning regulations. He told the Commission that if a town’s bylaws do not meet current National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) standards, residents could lose the ability to purchase or renew flood insurance through NFIP.
ACRPC provided a comparison of Vermont flood-hazard bylaw requirements to New Haven’s zoning regulations (adopted April 2024) and recommended several changes: adopt the 2022 Vermont Model Stand-Alone Flood Hazard Bylaws, add the state’s River Corridor bylaws for river-corridor protections, and consult the Department of Environmental Conservation regional river engineer for river-corridor changes. ACRPC staff noted the county’s digitized flood maps (available through FEMA’s map service center) were prepared by ACRPC in 2006 but are not official FEMA products.
