Floodplain Management

90-Day Appeal Period:   FEMA has received, reviewed and is in the process of approving a letter of map change (LOMR) for 62 C Street. FEMA requires a 90-day appeal period for the community. The LOMR officially revises the flood insurance rate map and flood insurance study for a specific area by letter instead of a physical map revision. The appeal period is March 8, 2021 to June 5, 2021. If there are no appeals the revisions will take effect on July 6, 2021.  This LOMR will revise the March 17, 2014 FIRM Panels No. 02090C4379J, 02090C4380J and 02090C4383J and the FIS Cross Sections W, X and Y of the Chena River. Please click on the case number to review the full document:  LOMR No. 20-10-0898P. 

Attention Surveyors and Engineers: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has released a 2019 Edition of the Elevation Certificate (PDF).

Attention Special Flood Hazard Area Residents: The new flood maps for Chena Slough area became effective on September 18, 2020. These maps removed 479 structures from the high-risk flood zone, changed flood zones, and designated base flood elevations. If you have a Letter of Map Change (e.g., LOMA, LOMR, LOMR-F) in FNSB, FEMA's Revalidation Letter dated September 19, 2020 may be downloaded from Related Documents, Letter of Map Changes for your flood insurance company.

Attention Realtors & Lenders: Flood zone determinations outside the digital Flood Insurance Rate Maps (dFIRMs), requires research and will take longer to process. Please email your request(s) in a timely manner. If you require a formal written request, please complete the Flood Determination Letter form.

Regulations & History

Title 15 is the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB) floodplain management ordinance. New construction or other development in the special flood hazard areas of the borough requires a Floodplain Permit. One of the principal concerns is that new construction is elevated to the proper height in order to minimize flood loss as shown below.

Floods and flooding are the most common and costly natural disasters in the United States. Floods present a natural hazard that affects some borough residents year-round and can jeopardize public health, safety, and welfare.

The borough joined the NFIP in 1969 and remains committed to increasing the overall awareness of flood hazards in the FNSB and to improving permitting compliance for new construction occurring in the floodplain.

It is important for the borough to continue monitoring new development in the floodplain by ensuring construction standards are met. Without such monitoring and regulatory oversight, the NFIP policies noted would not be possible. In addition, mortgage financing would be difficult, if not impossible, for any properties located in a flood hazard area because of the lender's requirement for flood insurance.