Hartford residents packed Hartford City Hall Wednesday evening for the city council meeting, which included a presentation on the Hartford levee issue.
Residents came to the meeting seeking answers to many questions, but one loomed — will the levee be certified in time so they don’t have to buy flood insurance? The Hartford levee issue has been hanging over residents’ head since spring of 2006 and the levee isn’t any closer to getting certified now than it was then.
The issue stems from new flood maps released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that doesn’t show the levee that protects Hartford from the Neosho River. In a meeting with Lyon County residents recently, representatives of FEMA told Lyon County residents they have 90 days to appeal the new flood maps. After that, there will be a six-month period before final maps are released and take effect.
If the Hartford levee isn’t certified by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns the levee, before the maps become final, the east side of the town will show up in a flood plain, forcing residents with federally backed mortgages in that area to purchase flood insurance.
“If you have a home that is paid for, you don’t have to buy flood insurance,” said Steve Samuelson, Lyon County zoning administrator and flood plain manager, who was at the meeting to answer questions.
For now, it’s a waiting game for residents of Hartford.
“Time runs out in nine months,” Samuelson said. “We’ve been working at this for 10 months already and we’ve gotten nowhere.”
As it stands now, Samuelson said, the Corps is still waiting on 2007 budget approval from congress. Once they get that approval, it still will take four months to certify the levee. But, there are still more complications.
“I’ve been told that the Corps of Engineers haven’t even written a policy to certify a levee even if they do have the money to certify it,” Samuelson said.
This comment met with several sighs and groans among audience members.
“We’re sunk,” one resident said.
Samuelson said the issue goes back to FEMA. The levee was left off a 1982 map, which was FEMA’s error. Samuelson had previously asked for a two-year provisional certification of the levee from FEMA to buy some more time for residents, but that request was denied this week because the levee isn’t shown on the map, Samuelson said.
Samuelson said there is a second problem, which FEMA told him they would fix. This problem lies with the base flood elevation.
“The elevation of the water has changed 18 feet from the old map to the new map,” Samuelson said. “That’s an error. They told me they would fix it, but they’ve told me a lot of things.”
Samuelson said in order for residents to be able to purchase flood insurance, the city first must participate in the National Flood Insurance Program. Participation is free to the city, and will allow residents to buy flood insurance. No resident can buy flood insurance until the town is enrolled in the program. Samuelson said all that is required is an application, a one-page ordinance and resolution of intent.
“It’s fairly simple to get in,” Samuelson said. “And you can opt out anytime. If the levee doesn’t get certified, you’ll be glad you joined.”
Samuelson advised residents to purchase their flood insurance 30 days before the new maps go into effect to get the preferred rate.
While it’s easy to get into the NFIP, unless the levee is certified, it still will put a financial burden on the residents of Hartford. If they enroll in flood insurance early, they can get a discounted rate, but they still have to pay. If the levee is certified after the new maps go into effect, residents can ask for a 100 percent refund during a certain time period, but that doesn’t help them out when they still have to pay for it up front. This has residents concerned.
Farah Naylor lives in what will be referred to as a flood zone if the levee isn’t certified.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” Naylor said. “This is a low-income community and they are going to force a lot of people to buy something they don’t need. I’ve lived here since I was a little girl and we’ve never had any flooding.”
Brenda Zabriskie, lives a block away from the levee, she said.
“I just found out about this,” Zabriskie said. “I was in shock.”
Zabriskie said she can’t afford the flood insurance rates. Her home is paid for, so she would not have to buy flood insurance. Zabriskie’s concerns lie with her neighbors and community.
“There are people living around me, young families who can’t afford to pay for this,” she said. “This is going to hurt the city. It’s not going do us any good as far as a community.”
One of Samuelson’s suggestions to the community was to write letters to state officials and draw up petitions.
“I definitely plan on writing my representatives, my senators, the governor and signing any petitions,” Zabriskie said.
Still, Hartford Mayor Paul Cassity cautioned residents not to panic.
“There is no reason to panic and sell your house,” Cassity said at the beginning of the discussion. “I’m confident this will work out.”