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City engineer urges Hutto to use Atlas 14 data; FEMA maps cited as outdated
Summary
The city engineer said locally adopted FEMA maps do not yet reflect Atlas 14 rainfall data and urged ordinance changes so Hutto can rely on newer models. Council members treated adoption of Atlas 14 as a partial solution to planning uncertainties tied to floodplain delineation.
Hutto's city engineer and floodplain administrator (City engineer (S3)) told the council that the FEMA maps adopted by the city are out of date and do not reflect newer Atlas 14 rainfall modeling. S3 said the county has run Atlas 14 models and is preparing to update FEMA maps; the engineer argued the city needs ordinance language enabling staff to use Atlas 14 data now to avoid inadvertently allowing lots that cannot be built.
"The FEMA maps don't reflect our Atlas 14," S3 said, noting the adopted FEMA maps were last updated in December 2019 in the transcript. S3 said staff have been operating in a gray area and are preparing ordinance language for the council to consider that would make Atlas 14 the working basis for floodplain review. The conversation tied into the broader plat-process recommendations: clearer floodplain mapping reduces future surprises for applicants and the city.
