flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

More than half of Houston properties at high or moderate risk of flooding are not in FEMA flood zone

Codes and Standards

More than half of Houston properties at high or moderate risk of flooding are not in FEMA flood zone

Properties outside of these zones are not required to carry flood insurance.


By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor | September 7, 2017
Floodwaters rise at the Interstate Motor Lodge in Houston

Wikimedia Commons Public Domain

More than half of residential and commercial properties in Houston that are at high or moderate risk of flooding are not included in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA), according to CoreLogic.

Properties outside those zones don't need flood insurance, so many flood victims of Hurricane Harvey will not have access to insurance reimbursements to make repairs. About 52% of residential and commercial properties in the Houston metro are at “High” or “Moderate” risk of flooding, but are not in a (SFHA), CoreLogic says.

Less than two weeks before Harvey, President Trump did away with the Obama-era Federal Flood Risk Management Standard that required federally funded construction in flood-prone areas to be built to higher resilience standards. There are concerns that rebuilding in Houston will not be done according to the more stringent standards that in some cases require structures to be built at higher elevations.

FEMA had proposed that most construction projects using federal funds be built 2 feet above the 100-year floodplain. Hospitals and other "critical action" projects would have been required to be built 3 feet above that floodplain. The higher elevation could mean the difference between full hospital functionality and a complete failure of electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems, according to an NBBJ healthcare partner quoted in a Modern Healthcare report.

Related Stories

Codes and Standards | Jan 27, 2021

AECOM sues insurance carrier for payment of COVID-19 property damage claims

Claims ‘all-risk policies’ should have included millions of dollars of losses due to virus.

Codes and Standards | Jan 26, 2021

Updated guide to repair and rehabilitate existing concrete structures published

Document assesses how to adhere to code requirements.

Codes and Standards | Jan 25, 2021

New guide for skylight selection, daylighting design released

Free Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance document now available.

Codes and Standards | Jan 20, 2021

Steel industry, labor urge Biden to retain steel tariffs

‘Essential to ensuring the viability of the domestic steel industry.’

Codes and Standards | Jan 19, 2021

2021 Solar Investment Tax Credit will remain at 26%

Incentive was scheduled to be reduced to 22%.

Codes and Standards | Jan 19, 2021

Thomas Jefferson University launches the Institute for Smart and Healthy Cities

Will address climate change, social equity, rapid urbanization, and health.

Codes and Standards | Jan 14, 2021

Petition urges FEMA to update flood maps, set tougher standards for floodplain construction

Environmental and planning groups note soaring claims, flood insurance debt.

Codes and Standards | Jan 13, 2021

Proposed change to IECC process irks efficiency advocates

New procedure would diminish influence of local code officials.

Codes and Standards | Jan 12, 2021

Two net-zero hotel projects could portend a new hospitality trend

Energy-intensive sector comprises 10% of all commercial real estate.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Sustainability

Grimshaw launches free online tool to help accelerate decarbonization of buildings

Minoro, an online platform to help accelerate the decarbonization of buildings, was recently launched by architecture firm Grimshaw, in collaboration with more than 20 supporting organizations including World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), RIBA, Architecture 2030, the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) and several national Green Building Councils from across the globe.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021