Champaign, IL Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

Section 9-231 requires a development permit before any 'development' begins in a special flood hazard area, defined broadly under Section 9-219 to include construction or additions valued over $1,000, mobile home installation, drilling, mining, utility and road work over $1,000, levees, walls, fences, filling, dredging, grading, excavating, and permanent material storage. The definition specifically excludes routine roof and road maintenance, repairs valued under 50 percent of the structure's market value, ordinary gardening and plowing, and exempt farm activity. The Building Safety Supervisor issues the permit for any building, addition, or reconstruction over $1,000 in value; the City Engineer issues permits for every other regulated activity.

Applications, per Section 9-232, must include sealed plans from a State-registered architect or engineer showing existing and proposed grade elevations relative to mean sea level, the lowest floor elevation of any structure, and, for nonresidential buildings, a certification that floodproofing meets the criteria in Section 9-252(2). Section 9-233 requires the reviewing official to confirm compliance with the floodway encroachment provisions of Section 9-253(1) and to compare the site's elevation against the base flood elevation before issuing. The permit fee, set in Section 9-234, is waived if another City permit fee already covers the work; otherwise it runs $1 per $1,000 of estimated development cost, with a $10 minimum.