Scottsdale, AZ Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

Section 37-7 adopts, by reference, the areas of special flood hazard identified by FEMA in the Flood Insurance Study for Scottsdale dated September 21, 1973, along with the accompanying Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Maricopa County and incorporated areas dated April 15, 1988, plus all later amendments; the Floodplain Board can also require developers to delineate floodplains in areas where development is imminent, using FEMA and Arizona Department of Water Resources criteria. Section 37-8 makes all development within a Special Flood Hazard Area subject to the article and any other applicable regulation, and Section 37-9 resolves conflicts with the rest of the Scottsdale Revised Code in favor of whichever provision gives the higher level of flood protection.

Floodways get the strictest treatment: Section 37-32 bars encroachment, including fill, new construction, and substantial improvements, unless a registered professional engineer certifies the work will not increase flood levels during a base flood, and even certified work must still meet every other flood hazard reduction standard in the chapter. The FIS and FIRM panels themselves are kept on file at 7447 E. Indian School Road, Scottsdale, where the public can inspect them, and the Floodplain Administrator, per Section 37-15, must notify FEMA and the Arizona Department of Water Resources whenever the city annexes or incorporates additional mapped area.