FEMA flood zone rules in Lubbock, TX — also called floodplain regulations or special flood hazard area (SFHA) rules — determine flood insurance requirements and elevation standards for new construction.
Lubbock participates in the NFIP and enforces floodplain rules in Chapter 12.5. Yellowhouse Canyon/Canyon Lakes system and 80-plus playa lakes create localized flood risk. Building in Zone AE or A requires elevation 1 ft above base flood elevation.
Lubbock entered the National Flood Insurance Program and adopts floodplain management standards in Lubbock Code Chapter 12.5 under Texas Water Code Chapter 16. FEMA FIRM maps show Zone AE along Yellowhouse Canyon (North and South Fork of the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos) through Mackenzie Park and Canyon Lakes, plus numerous shaded Zone X and small Zone A areas around interior playa lakes. The Halloween 1983 flood in Yellowhouse Canyon prompted extensive floodplain acquisition and the Canyon Lakes project. New construction or substantial improvement in the SFHA must have the lowest floor elevated at least 1 ft above base flood elevation (freeboard). Fill in floodway is prohibited. A Floodplain Development Permit is required for any work in the SFHA including sheds, pools, and fences.
Unpermitted SFHA work: stop-work plus restoration; violating community suspension risk for city.
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See how Lubbock's flood zones rules stack up against other locations.
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