Loveland, CO Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

LMC Title 18 (Unified Development Code), Division 18.09.03 governs all floodplain activity inside Loveland city limits and implements the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for the community. The regulated area is the FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) — the 1% annual chance (100-year) floodplain shown on the current effective Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) or the latest Letter of Map Revision (LOMR). Any construction or development — including placement of a manufactured home, fill, grading, or new utilities — inside the SFHA requires a Floodplain Development Permit before work begins. The Floodplain Administrator is Kevin Gingery, Senior Civil Engineer (kevin.gingery@cityofloveland.org, (970) 962-2771). Loveland's primary flood hazards are the Big Thompson River, which produced both the catastrophic July 31, 1976 Big Thompson Canyon Flood (144 deaths upstream — the deadliest flash flood in Colorado history) and the September 2013 flood that damaged hundreds of Loveland properties, plus Boyd Lake and tributary creeks. After the 2013 flood, the Colorado Hazard Mapping Program (CHAMP), CDOT, and the Colorado Water Conservation Board re-ran the Big Thompson hydrology; FEMA issued Preliminary FIS and FIRMs on January 27, 2021, held a public open house March 9, 2021, ran a 90-day public appeal period from May-August 2021, and issued final effective FIRMs in approximately March 2022. The city continues to manage Big Thompson floodplain mitigation through 'A Better Big Thompson River' and the Highway 287 Flood Mitigation Project. The 1976 flood was the federal catalyst for the modern NFIP floodplain rules. Verify any property by calling Senior Civil Engineer Kevin Gingery or visiting the city's Flood Management page.