Second set of changes to Portland’s floodplain development code take effect Oct. 1

News Article

Learn more about these updates to comply with federal requirements.

Last October, the Portland City Council adopted changes to the City's building code and zoning codethat apply to development within floodplains. These changes were adopted in anticipation of future changes to Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) requirements for development in flood hazard areas.

The building code amendments are applied in two parts. The first part, contained in Exhibit A of the adopted ordinance, which took effect last March 1, sought to maintain the City's standing in the NFIP by better aligning the City's floodplain development code with the State of Oregon's Model Flood Hazard Ordinance. The second part, Exhibit B, increases flood storage compensation requirements for certain flood hazard areas and will take effect on Oct. 1.

The significant changes adopted in Exhibit B include:

• Flood storage "compensation" will be increased within certain areas of the FEMA 100-year floodplain. These changes require that floodwaters displaced by development must be compensated by the creation of flood storage to improve habitat for threatened and endangered species. The volume of flood storage compensation is dependent upon the location of the development relative to the source of flooding.
• Flood storage compensation will be required for fill and structures, including lateral additions to existing structures, that displace floodwater.

These updated obligations represent the City's second step towards compliance with anticipated changes to the NFIP to meet the requirements of the Endangered Species Act.

Permit applications for projects in the affected areas that are submitted via Development Hub PDXby 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30, will be vested in current code requirements.

Applications must meet submittal requirements. Missing or incomplete application information requested by Portland Permitting & Development staff must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 28, to allow for intake fees to be billed. The intake fees must be paid in full by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 31.

For more information about permit submittal and intake fees, please contact the Permitting Services division of Portland Permitting & Development at 503-823-7300.

For more information about the Title 24.50 floodplain development changes, please contact the Site Development section of the Portland Permitting & Development at 503-823-7300. You may also schedule a free 15-minute appointmentwith a Site Development Engineer.

For information about the Floodplain Resilience Plan and the associated zoning code changes, please visit the project web page.

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