East Orange, NJ Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

East Orange readopted its floodplain management chapter July 24, 2023 by Ordinance No. 18-2023, replacing rules the City first enacted in 1988; the City has taken part in the National Flood Insurance Program since February 2, 1977 (§ 150-15A). § 150-14 applies the chapter, together with the Uniform Construction Code, to essentially every kind of development in a flood hazard area: subdivisions, site improvements and utility installation, placement of manufactured homes and recreational vehicles, new construction, alterations, repairs and substantial improvement of existing buildings, tank installation, and temporary or permanent storage. § 150-15C directs the Floodplain Administrator, who under § 150-17 is the City Engineer, to identify flood hazard areas from the FEMA Flood Insurance Study for Essex County dated April 3, 2020, the Flood Insurance Rate Maps listed in Table 150-15C(1) (Community Panel No.

340181-0112F, effective June 4, 2007), and New Jersey Flood Hazard Area Control Act mapping of state-regulated waters such as Nishuane Brook and the Second River Tributary, using whichever source is most restrictive. The Floodplain Administrator reviews every permit application to determine whether a site falls in a flood hazard area, coordinates with the Construction Official on the Uniform Construction Code's flood provisions, and can require additional engineering data before signing off. Anyone denied approval, or seeking relief from the elevation or construction standards, can appeal to the City of East Orange Zoning Board of Adjustment for a variance under Article VIII, but § 150-49 bars a variance in a floodway if it would raise flood levels during the base flood.