Fitchburg, WI Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)

The City of Fitchburg, in Dane County, adopted its current floodplain zoning standards by Ordinance No. 2025-O-10 on July 22, 2025. Section 22-853 defines flood protection elevation as two feet of freeboard above the water surface profile elevation calculated for the regional flood, the standard measure of flood risk used throughout the article. Section 22-802, governing the Floodfringe District, ties that definition to a concrete construction rule: new construction, placement of manufactured homes, and substantial improvement of residential structures must have the lowest floor elevated to or above the flood protection elevation on fill, with fill extending at least one foot above the regional flood elevation and reaching at least 15 feet beyond the structure's limits.

A basement or crawlspace floor may instead sit at the regional flood elevation only if it is built watertight to resist hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads, but no floor of any kind may go below the regional flood elevation. Before any floodplain construction begins, Section 22-840 requires a zoning permit from the zoning administrator, and Section 22-841 requires a certificate of compliance, backed by a registered professional engineer's or surveyor's elevation certification, before the structure may be occupied. Contiguous dry land access to land outside the floodplain is also required unless the city has written police, fire, and emergency-services assurance that rescue vehicles can reach the site during a flood. These standards implement Wisconsin's NFIP floodplain program but are enforced as city ordinance by Fitchburg's own zoning administrator, not merely restated state law.