Glen Cove, NY Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)

Section 154-17 governs residential elevation everywhere in Glen Cove's mapped flood hazard areas except the coastal high hazard zones covered separately by § 154-18. Within Zones A1-A30, AE, and AH, and Zone A where base flood elevation data exist, § 154-17A(1) requires new construction and substantial improvements to have the lowest floor, including any basement or cellar, elevated to or above two feet above the base flood elevation. Where Zone A has no published base flood elevation data, § 154-17A(2) instead requires the lowest floor to sit at least three feet above the highest adjacent grade, and in Zone AO, § 154-17A(3) ties the two-foot freeboard to the depth number printed on the Flood Insurance Rate Map rather than to a fixed base flood elevation figure.

These elevation standards apply on top of the general standards in § 154-16, which require flood-resistant construction materials and, for any enclosed area below the lowest floor, at least one square inch of flood-vent opening for every square foot of enclosed area, with the bottom of each opening no higher than one foot above grade. An applicant must submit the proposed lowest-floor elevation with the floodplain development permit application under § 154-13A, and once the floor is complete, the permit holder must file an as-built elevation certificate, prepared by a licensed engineer or surveyor, with the Building Department Administrator before a certificate of compliance will issue.