Skowhegan, ME Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)

Article VII of the Town of Skowhegan's Floodplain Management Ordinance, enacted June 10, 2024, sets the elevation standards for development in Zones A and AE. Article II defines the base flood as a flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year, the 100-year flood.

Residential (Article VII.H): new construction or substantial improvement of a residential structure in Zone AE shall have the lowest floor, including basement, elevated to at least one foot above the base flood elevation. In Zone A the same one foot standard applies where base flood data come from the sources the ordinance names, and in the absence of all that data the lowest floor must be at least two feet above the highest adjacent grade to the structure.

Non-residential (VII.I): in Zone AE the lowest floor goes at least one foot above base flood elevation, or the building is floodproofed to at least one foot above it so that it is watertight below that level, with structural components resisting hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads and a registered professional engineer or architect certifying the design.

Manufactured homes (VII.J): the lowest floor sits at least one foot above base flood elevation on a permanent foundation. Utilities (VII.F): the bottom of electrical, heating, plumbing, ventilation and air conditioning equipment, ductwork and other service equipment must be elevated to at least one foot above base flood elevation.

Trigger: Article II defines substantial improvement as work whose cost equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure before construction starts. Accessory structures in Zones A and AE are exempt from the elevation criteria only if limited to a one-story two car garage with an unfinished interior not used for habitation, located outside the floodway.

Proof: under Article VI.F the Planning Board issues a two part permit for elevated structures. Part I authorizes construction up to the first horizontal floor, then an under-construction Elevation Certificate from a Professional Land Surveyor is reviewed within 72 hours before the Code Enforcement Officer issues Part II.