Action on flood plain ordinance deferred
Richie cited the provision in the ordinance that called for a permit if the work involved "substantial improvement" or the costs exceeded 50% of the value of the structure.
Woodstock said the ordinance is too broad and seems to be geared toward an urban area rather than specific to
Supervisor
Emergency Management Coordinator
She explained the need for the ordinance is to protect nearby property owners from the effects of construction in the flood plain area.
"The permit purpose is to ensure you are not changing a waterway that would cause future damage downstream or upstream from that construction," Duckworth said.
A further purpose of the ordinance is to allow
"What happens if we don't enact an ordinance is federal disaster assistance limitations, public assistance goes away, individual assistance goes away... permanent work on public structures goes away," Duckworth said.
She pointed out that many of the landowners current concerns are actually items already prohibited or that need permits under the existing flood plain ordinance -- which does not meet the guidelines for federal funding.
Duckworth also stated that she is pursuing some flood mitigation projects and grants that cannot move forward until the county has adopted an appropriate flood ordinance.
Some possible solutions to the landowners' concerns were: exempting agricultural structures and/or water gaps from the ordinance, allowing landowners to apply for a one-time permit to build, repair and maintain a structure such as a water gap rather than requiring a new permit each time the structure needs repair, or creating an online application to streamline the process for the landowner.
Kenyon said he would rather allow the board, which understands the needs of the area, to make decisions by using variances, rather than work with
Woodstock said he understood the need for the ordinance but urged the board to make it as non-burdensome as possible.
"The risk at the other end is severe," Woodstock said, speaking of losses not covered by
The board voted to set a third public hearing for
Rock partnership
The board unanimously passed resolution No. 3 a Union County Private-Public Partnership Rock Surfacing Program allowing the county to partner with private businesses and citizens to purchase gravel for public roads. Union County Engineer
The resolution was designed to allow
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