Houston Changes Building Code In Response To Harvey

[Jim Cummings]

Houston Makes First Regulatory Response To Harvey Flooding HOUSTON (Houston Chronicle) – City council agreed last week to require all new construction in the city's flood plains be built two feet above the projected water level in a 500-year storm.   The new rules will take effect Sept. 1 and apply to all new buildings within the 500-year flood plain, which has a 0.2 percent chance of being inundated.   Current regulations mandate that buildings be constructed one foot above the flood level in a less severe 100-year storm. They apply only within the 100-year floodplain, where properties are considered to have a 1 percent chance of being inundated in a given year.   The unusually tight 9-7 vote is the city's first major regulatory response to the widespread flooding Hurricane Harvey unleashed last August. It also marks a shift away from the city's longtime aversion to constraining development.

[Mike Wood]

It's FEMA that requires any project where over 50% of the original value is added (repair or renovation) will require the property to be built in accordance with the current building regulations, including FEMA elevation requirements (based on base flood elevation). The only thing the city can do is to play with the 50% value number, which was often times done in New Orleans after Katrina to allow the property to be rebuilt without being forced to comply with the current building regulations (including elevation requirements).