Council Bluffs, IA Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

Chapter 13.25, Floodplain Management, applies to lands within the one-hundred-year flood boundary shown on the FEMA flood insurance rate maps for Pottawattamie County and Council Bluffs, adopted by reference under CBMC 13.25.060. CBMC 13.25.140 requires that all development within areas of significant flood hazard be consistent with minimizing flood damage, use construction methods and materials resistant to flood damage, and obtain all necessary permits from federal, state, and local agencies, including approval from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources when required. CBMC 13.25.300 backs that standard with a permit gate: a floodplain development permit issued by the administrator, defined in CBMC 13.25.290 as the building official, must be secured before any man-made change to real estate in the floodplain, including buildings, mining, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling, or placing a factory-built home.

Applicants must show, under CBMC 13.25.310, the work description, site location, intended use, the one-hundred-year flood elevation, and the lowest floor elevation or floodproofing level, plus cost and market-value data for improvements to existing buildings. The administrator can approve or disapprove within a reasonable time, must state specific reasons for any disapproval, and cannot issue permits for variances except as directed by the building board of appeals under CBMC 13.25.340, which requires a showing of hardship and Department of Natural Resources concurrence before granting relief. Watercourse alterations and flood control structures like levees also require Department of Natural Resources approval under CBMC 13.25.210 and 13.25.220.