§ 5.1. General standards.

In all areas of special flood hazard the following provisions are required:

5.1.1. New construction, structures that have sustained substantial damage, and substantial improvements shall be anchored to prevent flotation, collapse or lateral movement of the structure;

5.1.2. New construction, structures that have sustained substantial damage, and substantial improvements shall be constructed with materials and utility equipment resistant to flood damage;

5.1.3. New construction, structures that have sustained substantial damage, or substantial improvements shall be constructed by methods and practices that minimize flood damage;

5.1.4. Electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, air conditioning equipment, and other service facilities shall be designed and/or located so as to prevent water from entering or accumulating within the components during conditions of flooding;

5.1.5. New and replacement water supply systems shall be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the system;

5.1.6. New and replacement sanitary sewage systems shall be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems and discharges from the system into flood waters;

5.1.7. On-site waste disposal systems shall be located and constructed to avoid impairment to them or contamination from them during flooding;

5.1.8. Manufactured homes:

(a)

All manufactured homes (including "mobile" homes placed on a site for one hundred eighty (180) consecutive days or longer) to be places, or substantially improved shall be elevated so that the lowest floor is at least one (1) foot above the base flood elevation;

(b)

It shall be placed on a permanent foundation which itself is securely anchored and to which the structure is securely anchored so that it will resist flotation, lateral movement, and hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressures. Anchoring may include, but not be limited to, the use of over-the-top or frame ties to ground anchors;

(c)

It shall be installed using methods and practices which minimize flood damage.

(1)

Adequate access and drainage should be provided.

(2)

Elevation construction standards include, piling foundations placed no more than ten (10) feet apart, and reinforcement is provided for piers more than six (6) feet above ground level.

5.1.9. In any portion of a watercourse which is altered or relocated the flood carrying capacity shall be maintained and;

5.1.10. A structure already in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance shall not be made non-compliant by any alteration, repair, reconstruction or improvement to the structure.

5.1.11. New construction, substantial improvements and repair to structures that have sustained substantial damage cannot be constructed or located entirely or partially over water.

5.1.12. Above-ground storage tanks (oil, propane, etc.) which are located outside or inside of the structure must either be elevated above the base flood elevation (BFE) on a concrete pad, or be securely anchored with tie-down straps to prevent flotation or lateral movement, have the top of the fill pipe extended above the BFE, and have a screw fill cap that does not allow for the infiltration of flood water.

5.1.13. In any portion of a watercourse that is altered or relocated, the flood carrying capacity must be maintained. Notify adjacent communities and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Inland Water Resources Division prior to any alteration or relocation of a watercourse.

5.1.14. If any portion of a structure lies within the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), the entire structure is considered to be in the SFHA. The entire structure must meet the construction requirements of the flood zone. The structure includes any attached additions, garages, decks, sunrooms, or any other structure attached to the main structure. Decks or porches that extend into a more restrictive flood zone will require the entire structure to meet the standards of the more restrictive zone.

5.1.15. If a structure lies within two or more flood zones, the construction standards of the most restrictive zone apply to the entire structure (i.e., V zone is more restrictive than A zone; structure must be built to the highest BFE). The structure includes any attached additions, garages, decks, sunrooms, or any other structure attached to the main structure. (Decks or porches that extend into a more restrictive zone will require the entire structure to meet the requirements of the more restrictive zone.)

5.1.16. Compensatory storage. The water holding capacity of the floodplain, except those areas which are tidally influenced, shall not be reduced. Any reduction caused by filling, new construction or substantial improvements involving an increase in footprint to the structure, shall be compensated for by deepening and/or widening of the floodplain. Storage shall be provided on-site, unless easements have been gained from adjacent property owners; it shall be provided within the same hydraulic reach and a volume not previously used for flood storage; it shall be hydraulically comparable and incrementally equal to the theoretical volume of flood water at each elevation, up to and including the 100-year flood elevation, which would be displaced by the proposed project. Such compensatory volume shall have an unrestricted hydraulic connection to the same waterway or water body. Compensatory storage can be provided off-site if approved by the municipality.

5.1.17. Equal conveyance. Within the floodplain, except those areas which are tidally influenced, as designated on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for the community, encroachments resulting from filling, new construction or substantial improvements involving an increase in footprint of the structure, are prohibited unless the applicant provides certification by a registered professional engineer demonstrating, with supporting hydrologic and hydraulic analyses performed in accordance with standard engineering practice, that such encroachments shall not result in any (0.00 feet) increase in flood levels (base flood elevation). Work within the floodplain and the land adjacent to the floodplain, including work to provide compensatory storage shall not be constructed in such a way so as to cause an increase in flood stage or flood velocity.

(Ord. of 8-12-08)