AH waits turn, questions FEMA ALYSSA PASSEGGIO, Senior Staff Writer, The Courier, July 17 Posted:07/18/08
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While the bulk of the flood map debate has taken place in Middletown and Keansburg, Atlantic Highlands residents met with officials on July 9.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) sent an insurance representative and a project manager to answer questions from the shore community.
The borough did not waste time during the months leading up to the meeting. Officials submitted topographical information from recent projects in town in order to ensure the most up-to-date information was used.
“Over the last three months, [Councilman Louis Fligor] gathered information,” Borough Administrator Adam Hubeny said. “Some of it was helpful and some matched their information.”
About 50 homes and businesses in the borough would be affected by the map updates, Hubeny said.
Project Manager John Chayko, of Medina Consultants, Hackettstown, said none of the information submitted has disputed anything already on the maps to date.
Natural Hazards Program Specialist Richard Einhorn noted that the comment and appeals period is currently open and will end in September.
Einhorn said the public process had a late start due to the large impact. The updated maps would affect about 2,000 structures in the area.
Once the public comment and appeals period is closed, FEMA would issue responses to the appropriate parties, Chayko said. Barring any complications, the maps would become final in about six months, Einhorn said.
He warned that once the maps become final, the insurance rates would be locked in and urged property owners in the impacted area to take advantage of the grandfathered rates currently available.
Homeowners or commercial entities in the floodplain with mortgages would be required by their banks to obtain flood insurance, Einhorn said.
“If you wait for the bank to notify you there is not a thing I can do for you,” Einhorn said.
Officials recommended that property owners on the fringe of the floodplain appeal the maps by hiring an engineer to conduct a survey.
Information proving a property is above a specific elevation level could help the parcel be removed from the flood zone, officials said. However, a bank may still require flood insurance due to a property’s proximity to the flood zone, officials said. Comment period
Resident Joseph Hawley questioned the representatives on the happenings if recent efforts to delay the maps were successful.
Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-NJ, introduced legislation in June that would place a moratorium on the adoption of the maps to give communities more time.
“I can tell you [Congress] is not going to change it. We are under their mandate,” Einhorn said. “I don’t think [the legislation] is going anywhere and I wouldn’t hang my hat on it.”
Einhorn explained that the project was mandated by Congress and is up for reauthorization this year. Until that point, FEMA is to follow its orders with the maps, he added.
Fligor noted how maps in Washington D.C. were rescinded when their buildings were in worse shape than those in this area.
“I have a hard time with these maps [here] knowing their buildings are currently underwater and their maps were rescinded,” Fligor said.
Several residents questioned the expense of the flood insurance, noting the difficult economy. Borough Clerk Dwayne Harris questioned how the price would rise in the upcoming years.
Resident Mike Rybeck asked how the recent information would be put to use to avoid flooding in the region. Einhorn said that was the responsibility of Army Corps of Engineers.
Hubeny said the borough would put together a list of all the affected properties by block and lot in the near future. For more information visit FEMA’s Web site at msc.fema.gov.
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