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All Departments Administration Corrections Development Services Facilities Management Human Resources Information Technology Library Services Management and Budget Services Natural Resources Management Neighborhood and Human Services Parks and Recreation Public Safety Public Works Veterans Services Waste ServicesThe Federal Emergency Management Agency and Florida Division of Emergency Management have received the following application for federal grant funding. Final notice is hereby given of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) consideration to provide funding in the form of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Funds will be provided in accordance with Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Public Law 93-288, as amended.
Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), federal actions must be reviewed and evaluated for feasible alternatives and for social, economic, historic, environmental, legal, and safety considerations. Under Executive Order (EO) 11988 and EO 11990 FEMA is required to consider alternatives to and to provide public notice of any proposed actions in or affecting floodplains or wetlands. EO 12898 also requires FEMA to provide the opportunity for public participation in the planning process and to consider potential impacts to minority or low-income populations.
Funding for the proposed project will be conditional upon compliance with all applicable federal, tribal, state and local laws, regulations, floodplain standards, permit requirements and conditions.
Applicant:
Escambia County
Project Title:
HMGP-4673-DR-FL Escambia County – Floodplain Property Acquisition
Location of Proposed Work:
The area affected by this project consists of homes in the follow locations:
Proposed Work and Purpose:
Escambia County (the County) is vulnerable to flood risk from multiple sources: coastal, riverine, and stormwater flooding. The County maintains an open flood questionnaire on their website to identify at-risk properties with repetitive flood losses and ascertain appropriate mitigation measures to address flooding. Through this system, the County has identified seven eligible and interested households within the Bayou Marcus watershed that have experienced localized flooding and are located within FEMA's Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) based on current and preliminary flood map products. The three most recent loss events consistent across all the interested properties include the April 2014 rain event, where the County experienced over 24 inches of rain in a 26-hour period, Hurricane Sally in September 2020, and the June 2023 rain event that brought 16 inches of rain in a 6-hour period. Each flooding event directly impacts the properties and greatly impacts households emotionally and financially. Without intervention, residents can expect to suffer from continued losses in the form of physical, fiscal, and health impacts.
Increasing development and a changing climate only promises greater and more frequent storm intensities. Recent development in the area has exacerbated flooding challenges by adding impervious surface to the region, and thus increasing the stormwater load around the properties. This is coupled with more frequent and intense precipitation events, creating more damaging flood events.
The proposed project will acquire and demolish 7 residential structures in the SFHA, eliminating future flood damages to these properties. FEMA 551 states that, "acquiring and demolishing or simply demolishing a flood prone structure is the most successful means of ensuring that a structure will not accumulate additional losses from future flood events." As demolished properties will remain deed-restricted open space into perpetuity, this action offers additional protection to remaining area residents and reduces flood risk to capital infrastructure.
Project Alternatives:
The alternatives to the project that have been and will be considered are 1) the no action alternative and 2) is to elevate the subject properties. This alternative would reduce the likelihood of damages to structures on the property but would not completely eliminate that risk. Raising the first-floor elevation (FFE) of structures to the property elevation will remove those properties from the danger of inundation from most floods, however, does not guarantee their safety from the worst events.
These alternatives to the proposed project are not viable because under Alternative 1) repetitive flooding is not alleviated and the needs of the community would not be served; and Alternative 2) Although the risk of damages to structures would be reduced, they would not be altogether eliminated. In the instance of future flood events residents will either be trapped within their homes or prevented from accessing them inevitably necessitating some sort of rescue or alternative arrangement for housing, or both. The elevation of structures may also result in daily access issues for homeowners, especially those with limited mobility who would be required to use stairs or ramps to enter and exist in their home. Finally, although homes may be elevated above BFE for the alternative project structures such as sheds, utilities such as septic tanks, and personal property such as vehicles will not be. The impacts of flooding on these assets not only cause damages but can have environmental consequences as well. In addition to the presence of what would become general debris, fluids in vehicles, chemicals kept in storage structures, as well as fecal matter from septic tanks are all at risk of being released into floodwaters. This is not only a source of environmental degradation but may also result in a secondary health crisis.
Comment Period:
Comments are solicited from the public; local, state or federal agencies; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of the proposed project. The comments should be made in writing and addressed to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Bureau of Mitigation, 2555 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32399-2100. These are due within 30 days of the notice. The State will forward comments to the applicable regulatory agencies as needed.
Interested persons may submit comments, obtain more detailed information about the proposed action, or request a copy of the findings by contacting:
Matt Skipper, Stormwater Program Manager
Escambia County Engineering
850-977-5660
Matt_skipper@myescambia.com
Kayla Born, State Lead Environmental Specialist
Florida Division of Emergency Management
850-273-9289
Kayla.Born@em.myflorida.com
The mission of Escambia County government is to provide efficient, responsive services that enhance our quality of life, meet common needs and promote a safe and healthy community.
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