Ord #177 - Flood Plain Management Ordinance

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Special Flood Hazard Area — a term used for flood insurance purposes synonymous with "One Hundred Year Floodplain." Start of Construction — includes substantial improvement, and means the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, placement or other improvement that occurred before the permit's expiration date. The actual start is either the first placement of permanent construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns, or any work beyond the stage of excavation; or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for a basement, footings, piers, foundations, or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main structure. For a substantial improvement, the actual start of construction means the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building. Structure - anything constructed or erected on the ground or attached to the ground or on-site utilities, including, but not limited to, buildings, factories, sheds, detached garages, cabins, manufactured homes, recreational vehicles not meeting the exemption criteria specified in Section 78-1137 (2) of this ordinance and other similar items. Substantial Damage - means damage of any origin sustained by a structure where the cost of restoring the structure to it's before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. Substantial Improvement - within any consecutive 365 -day period, any reconstruction, rehabilitation (including normal maintenance and repair), repair after damage, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the "start of construction" of the improvement. This term includes structures that have incurred "substantial damage," regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either: (a) Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications which have been identified by the local code enforcement official and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions. (b) Any alteration of a "historic structure," provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation as a "historic structure." For the purpose of this ordinance, "historic structure" is as defined in 44 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 59.1. 78-1112 Annexations: The Flood Insurance Rate Map panels adopted by reference into Section 78-1105 above may include floodplain areas that lie outside of the corporate boundaries of the City of Orono at the time of adoption of this ordinance. If any of these floodplain land areas are annexed into the City of Orono after the date of adoption of this ordinance, the newly annexed floodplain lands will be subject to the provisions of this ordinance immediately upon the date of annexation.