City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: MARCH 5, 2025
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
THROUGH: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER /s/
FROM: ADRIANA CASTAÑEDA, DIRECTOR, TRANSPORTATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of a Request to Approve the Submission of the Flood Insurance Assessment to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
BODY
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ISSUE: In support of the City of Alexandria’s (City) ongoing participation in the Federal Emergency Management’s (FEMA) Community Rating System (CRS) the City developed a Flood Insurance Assessment (FIA) to analyze the City’s current level of flood insurance coverage to identify where increased coverage would be beneficial. The FIA includes some suggested actions to increase coverage in vulnerable areas. Submission of the FIA will result in the City’s eligibility to receive an additional 15 points towards the City’s CRS class rating that correlates to a reduction in flood insurance premiums for property owners.
RECOMMENDATION: That the City Council:
1. Approve the Submission of the attached Flood Insurance Assessment Technical Memo; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute the necessary documents that may be required.
BACKGROUND: Participation in the CRS Program involves the implementation of “Activities” prescribed by CRS to which points are awarded towards a community’s Class Rating. The better, or lower, the rating, the bigger the discount residents and businesses may receive on the purchase of FEMA flood insurance. The City currently holds a Class 6 rating which corresponds to up to a 20% discount on FEMA flood insurance premiums. An example of the types of CRS activities for which the City currently receives points include:
• Maintaining the availability of Elevation Certificates and making available mapping information on FEMA floodplains.
• Conducting annual outreach.
• Maintaining flood protection information on the City’s website and city libraries.
• Offering one-on-one advice regarding property protection and advice on flood insurance.
• Preserving open space in FEMA floodplains.
• Maintaining the storm sewer system and enforcing regulations for stormwater management.
• Adoption and implementation of the Northern Virginia Hazard Mitigation Plan
The development and submittal of an FIA is a recent CRS activity undertaken by staff. The FIA is a tool used by communities to evaluate and assess the current level of flood insurance coverage within the community. The FEMA CRS Program encourages dissemination of this data to a community’s governing body to promote awareness and encourage flood insurance promotion activities. According to FEMA, many people are not aware that flood insurance is available, and many of those who are aware do not grasp a need to insure their property. FEMA states that as a method of protecting people from the consequences of flooding, promoting flood insurance should be as much a community responsibility as building flood control projects or regulating new development in the floodplain. Communities participating in the CRS are encouraged to promote the availability of flood insurance and its importance as a preparedness measure. The City currently holds a CRS Class 6 rating, providing residents and businesses up to a 20% discount on premiums for federal flood insurance. The submission of the FIA to FEMA CRS may provide 15 points towards a lower-class rating for the City. Additional points accrued may result in a higher discount on premiums for federal flood insurance.
DISCUSSION: In response to frequent and intense flooding events in recent years, the City has sought to implement additional strategies to increase resilience in stormwater infrastructure, floodplain management, and the overall community to damaging flood events. This includes eligible strategies that increase resiliency to flood events while qualifying for additional CRS points that can lead to a better CRS class rating for additional reductions in federal flood insurance. The FIA assists staff by analyzing flood insurance coverage to better target outreach activities on the most at-risk properties for flooding and generally on the benefits of having flood insurance. Maintaining the City’s current class rating and potentially gaining a better class rating will continue to make FEMA flood insurance more affordable for property owners.
The FIA analyzes aggregate flood insurance coverage data received from FEMA and organizes the data into numbers of buildings covered by flood zone and occupancy type. The data was used to identify potential improvements to the City’s outreach efforts.
The attached Flood Insurance Assessment Technical Memo lays out the process steps and captures the data and analysis to constitute the activity needed for these CRS points.
1. Collect flood insurance information: FEMA provided the aggregated data per number of buildings covered by occupancy type and regulated flood zone.
2. Determine the level of flood insurance coverage: The level of coverage was determined by the number of buildings with flood insurance and the amount of coverage based on type of occupancy and flood zone. The analysis determined that approximately 475 properties or 51% of the 926 insurable properties in the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) have flood insurance.
3. Prepare the document: Staff also considered that about one third of Repetitive Loss properties are not in the SFHA. Staff concluded that properties within Repetitive Loss Areas, those areas outside of the SFHA that are prone to frequent flooding, and properties within the SFHA should receive additional outreach from the City. This outreach will utilize multiple media types and highlight the City’s existing programs such as the Flood Mitigation Grant Program, the Backflow Preventer Program, and the Stormwater Utility Fee Credit Program.
4. Submit to the governing body: The attached FIA Technical Memo is being presented for consideration and approval of submission by the City Council with this docket item.
5. Reassess: The FIA will be re-assessed and completed every five years in advance of the anticipated FEMA CRS verification/cycle visit that occurs on this schedule. The next FIA will be presented to the City Council for consideration of approval to submit in response to the verification/cycle visit.
After the City Council approves the submission of the FIA, a record of the Council’s action and the FIA will be submitted to FEMA CRS staff. The City’s CRS Program may be awarded an additional 15 points towards the City’s CRS Class rating score.
FISCAL IMPACT: The proposed enhanced outreach will be absorbed in the current budget and efforts and will not require a request for additional funding.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Flood Insurance Assessment Technical Memo
Attachment 2: Presentation
STAFF:
Emily A. Baker, P.E., Deputy City Manager
Alicia Wright, Assistant Director, Administrative Services, T&ES
William J. Skrabak, Deputy Director, Environmental Quality, T&ES
Jesse E. Maines, Division Chief, Stormwater Management, T&ES
Brian Rahal, P.E., Civil Engineer IV / Floodplain Administrator, T&ES