Middletown resolution credits bipartisan effort
Public meeting on flood maps set for June 13 in Keansburg
BY JAMIE ROMM Staff Writer
The Middletown Township Committee succeeded in its second attempt to pass a resolution asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for a moratorium on the revised flood zone maps.

On the first attempt to pass the resolution, the vote split along party lines 2-2 with DeputyMayor Pamela Brightbill absent.

The split came as Committeeman Sean Byrnes, a Democrat, proposed adding U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.'s (D-6th District) name to the resolution for his work in calling for a moratorium on the implementation of the maps. Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger and Committeeman Thomas Wilkens disagreed.

Both sides said they were in agreement on opposing the revised flood maps, which would add hundreds of Bayshore properties to the flood zone.

In the updated version, a new paragraph that credits Pallone and Assemblywoman Amy Handlin (R-13) is included to appease both parties.

"The Middletown Township Committee respectfully requests the federal and state legislators representing Middletown Township and the entire Bayshore area, including Congressman Frank Pallone andAssemblywomanAmyHandlin who have already proposed or endorsed moratoriums to the proposed FEMAmaps," the resolution states. "To give immediate priority to the legislative approval for the funding of appropriate flood hazard and levy reconstruction projects in this area that would extend relief to the residents fromthe risk of floods and the imposition of additional financial burdens through flood hazard insurance requirements and expanded flood zone areas."

FEMA has released new preliminary flood maps that expand the flood zones in local coastal municipalities.

The maps have been made public to inform property owners about whether they need flood insurance or not, and how much protection they need.

Federal law requires flood insurance for any building that is located in a high-risk zone.

The resolution states both the positives and negatives of the FEMA plan while also suggesting improvements and amoratorium.

"Most of the existing federal flood zone maps are more than 10 years old and because of physical changes in the coastline and flood plain areas caused by development, erosion and natural forces," the resolution states.

"The Federal Emergency Management Agency has undertaken a national effort, called the Flood Map Modernization Program, to update the data and information so as to produce more reliable flood risk data and convert the data to a digital format."

The resolution states that the overall purpose of the project is beneficial as it will enable communities to overlay and analyze the updated flood data with other digitalized information bases such as street layouts, infrastructure, evacuation routes and development information, andwill also allow easier access and production of timely updates to maps as flood risks change.

"Upon preliminary review, it appears there are potentially substantial inconsistencies or inaccuracies in the data and proposed flood zones, which require further comment and study," the resolution states.

"And that large areas including over 2,000 homes inMiddletown are nowincluded in the mapped flood zones, which were not previously in such zones apparently due to inadequacies in the federal flood levies that were built a number of years ago and which have not been adequately upgraded ormaintained."

The resolution states the consequences of the failure to upgrade the levies to current standards and the apparent mapping "inconsistencies" and "inaccuracies" will be to require numerous property owners not previously in the designated flood hazard areas to now obtain flood insurance or pay higher rates for the insurance.

"This additional flood designation and insurance requirement will inflict a substantial financial hardship on the residents of these areas as a result of these flood insurance costs and increased regulatory burdens for construction or additions to houses," the resolution states.

In some cases, properties that didn't require flood insurance in the past, or were considered to be in low- or moderate-risk zones may now be considered to be in highrisk areas and residents could be forced to pay premiums costing up to $5,000 each year.

The resolution asks FEMAand theArmy Corp of Engineers to upgrade the levy system as it would reduce flood risk and insurance costs.

It goes on to address the federal and state legislators' efforts to raise concern andmake inquiries to FEMA and endorses their efforts.

Pallone's proposed legislation asks for a moratoriumon themaps whileHandlin has presented FEMA with a petition signed by Bayshore residents opposed to the maps.

FEMA and the state Department of Environmental Protection will hold an open house on June 13 to allow residents to review the revised flood maps.

Themeetingwill be held at the Bayshore Senior Center onMain Street inKeansburg.

There will be a four-hour informal workshop, followed by a two-hour formal presentation at 6 p.m., at which FEMA executives will provide an overview of the agency's revised Bayshore-area flood zone maps.

Both Pallone andHandlin have said that they would be attending the event.