City of Greenville efforts to reduce flooding will lower flood insurance premiums

GREENVILLE, N.C. — Greenville residents will soon see a decrease in flood insurance premiums due in large part to floodplain management activities implemented by the City's Engineering Department.

Beginning October 1, the City's rating in the Community Rating System (CRS) will improve by two classes to a Class 5, leading to a 25-percent reduction in flood insurance premiums.

"We are so pleased to be able to play a role in the reduction of flood insurance premiums for the residents of Greenville," Greenville Mayor P.J. Connelly said. "I would specifically like to thank the City's Engineering Department for the strategies they put in place that make our residents safer and reduce damage to property."

The CRS is a voluntary, incentive-based community program that recognizes, encourages, and rewards local floodplain management activities that exceed the minimum standards of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). CRS provides a framework and a variety of technical resources to help participating communities implement a comprehensive flood risk management program designed to reduce and avoid flood losses and to strengthen the insurance aspects of the NFIP.

The City was previously a Class 7 in the CRS, which provides a 15 percent reduction in flood insurance premiums. The Class 5 designation paves the way for the 25 percent reduction for policies issued or renewed on or after October 1, 2023.

"The savings is a tangible result of the flood mitigation activities your community implements to protect lives and reduce property damage," CRS Coordinator William Lesser said in a letter to the City. "I commend you on your community actions and your determination to lead your community to be more disaster resistant."

Highlighting the items that earned the City points toward its CRS rating were a Repetitive Loss Area Analysis, a program for public information, drainage system maintenance, map information services, and public outreach.

Representatives from the North Carolina Department of Public Safety Emergency Management Division will be at the Greenville City Council meeting on Monday, September 11, at 6 p.m., to recognize the City for its efforts.