Residents rally together over flood zone [The Porterville Recorder, Calif.]

May 30--The residents of the area referred to as Zone A are holding a meeting at 11 a.m. Saturday at 1015 N. Wilson Place to discuss the on-going issue of paying for flood insurance in an area that is not really considered a flood risk area any longer.

Linda Hoy, the representative for the residents, stated that Zone A is not actually a flood zone area anymore, yet they are still required to pay for flood insurance by their insurance companies. Hoy purchased her home in 2011 and spoke with the realtor during the process of purchasing the home.

"The realtor and I checked and were advised Zone A was going to change and wasn't going to be listed under a flood zone by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) anymore," Hoy said. "The neighbors told me it's been going on since 1989 that the zone was supposed to change."

Because these homes are considered to be a flood risk, as of right now, banks require home owners to purchase flood insurance, which can be quite expensive.

"I pay through my FHA loan insurance and they require it because it's a flood zone," Hoy explained. "I pay the lowest amount, about $800-$900 a year."

Maria and Jesse Wilcox, who live on N. Atkins, have owned their home for about 23 years. Maria Wilcox said that they pay between $1,200-$1,300 per year for their flood insurance.

"It's been several years," she stated, referring to how long they have been trying to get the flood zone lifted, "that me and several other people in the neighborhood have been trying. We were told to get an engineer, but we don't have that kind of money. A lot of them [neighbors] are senior citizens on a fixed income."

It is usually the citizens' responsibility to pay for and hire an engineer to determine whether or not the area is still a flood zone and to submit the findings to FEMA for final approval.

"But, we've made the commitment," Mike Reed, deputy public works director and city engineer said, and the city is still actively working on doing everything they can to help the residents in Zone A.

However, getting an area changed from a flood zone to a non-flood zone is not an easy process and can take a long time to achieve. The FEMA maps were created in 1986, so any homes purchased during or after that time have been charged the flood insurance premiums.

In an e-mail to Hoy on Tuesday, Reed wrote "the City is actively studying the Zone A designation shown on FEMA Panel 1633E. The Zone A area is located in an area that encompasses a portion of Monache High School, a portion of Walmart shopping center and residential property to the north. The intersection of Beverly Street and Mulberry Avenue is approximate center of the flood hazard zone. The purpose of the study is to obtain a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR) that will remove the Zone A designation from FEMA Panel 1633E."

To make matters even more complicated, the City's modeling software was not FEMA approved. This resulted in delays as "the City was forced to obtain FEMA approved modeling software that was compatible with the City's software in order to avoid a manual data reentry process," Reed's e-mail further explained.

Reed's e-mail assured Hoy the "Staff is sensitive to the communities frustration regarding the time it has taken to maneuver through the study. We ask that you please understand that this project, like many others, take a lower priority to grant projects that have specific deadlines. The study is very time consuming due to the level of detail necessary to prove that a Zone A designation can be removed by a LOMR. On top of that, staff is in and out of the study due to time sensitive projects, again predominately grant funded projects."

Porterville Public Works Director Baldo Rodriquez said "we have to prove that there are improvements. We have to have something out there to show that there are not any problems."

"The infrastructure has to be there," Reed added. "Right now, we have to prove that the area has the capacity to hold the water. Additional things may come up that can cause delay. The infrastructure has taken many, many years of improvement."

Reed explained that this was a very lengthy process that required a lot of research and work. Part of the process includes "running models to make sure the drainage reservoir meets the requirements of FEMA and the City of Porterville."

Hoy expressed her frustration and concern on how some of the residents were not being charged for flood insurance until a later time. Reed and Rodriquez explained when FEMA made the maps, not all of the banks interpreted the FEMA maps correctly and some residents escaped having to pay for insurance for a while. As the banks became more familiar with the FEMA maps, residents were then required to have flood insurance.

Although Hoy and the area's residents are holding a block meeting on Saturday, there was not enough notice for officials to be able to make the meeting. However, Reed and Rodriquez expressed their desire to set up a time during the week where more officials can be on hand to answer any questions the residents in Zone A might have.

Any citizen that is curious about their area can find out information. "We have a map that shows every plot so that you can go and see if you're in a flood zone," Reed said. "If the banks or insurance companies try to charge for flood insurance and it's not a flood zone, the city can provide a letter" which will require the banks to remove the flood insurance requirements as pertaining to a flood zone.

Although the City is doing all that they can and will provide their findings to FEMA around the middle or later part of June, whether the maps are approved, "that's a FEMA call," Rodriquez warned.

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