FEMA flood zone rules in Johnson County, IA — also called floodplain regulations or special flood hazard area (SFHA) rules — determine flood insurance requirements and elevation standards for new construction.
Johnson County, Iowa City, and Coralville enforce NFIP floodplain rules along the Iowa River and Clear Creek, and Iowa DNR permits work in the floodway. The 2008 flood reshaped local standards.
Johnson County, Iowa City, Coralville, and North Liberty take part in the National Flood Insurance Program, so buildings in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area along the Iowa River, Clear Creek, and Coralville Reservoir must be elevated to or above the base flood elevation, and federally backed mortgages there require flood insurance. The June 2008 flood, when the Iowa River overwhelmed Coralville Dam and inundated the University of Iowa campus and downtown Coralville, drove tougher local rules: Iowa City now requires added freeboard and holds critical and public buildings to the 500-year flood standard. Separately, Iowa DNR permits construction in the regulated floodway, and the Iowa Flood Center at UI models local flood risk.
Building below the required flood elevation, or placing fill or structures in the floodway without permits, brings stop-work orders, removal and restoration orders, retroactive compliance costs, and risk to NFIP insurance eligibility.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Johnson County, IA
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See how Johnson County's flood zones rules stack up against other locations.
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