Bartow County, GA Hurricane Preparedness: Flood Elevation (2026)

Chapter 34, Division 6 of the Bartow County Code sets the building standards that apply once a structure has cleared the development restrictions in sections 34-78 through 34-80. New construction and substantial improvements of principal buildings, including manufactured homes, must be anchored to prevent flotation, collapse or lateral movement, built with materials resistant to flood damage, and constructed using methods that minimize flood damage. Enclosed areas below the lowest floor, such as crawl spaces used for parking or storage, must have flood vents providing at least one square inch of net opening per square foot of enclosed area, with the bottom of every opening no higher than one foot above grade.

Mechanical, electrical, plumbing and ventilation equipment must sit at least three feet above the base flood elevation or one foot above the future-conditions flood elevation, whichever is higher. Manufactured homes must be anchored with over-the-top or frame ties to ground anchors, and water and sewer systems must be designed to keep floodwater from infiltrating them. Where a site spans more than one flood zone, the more restrictive elevation standard controls. The county engineer, acting as administrator under section 34-64, reviews permit applications, records finished-floor elevations and interprets floodplain boundary disputes.

Anyone contesting a determination can appeal to the board of appeals within 30 days under section 34-102, and the board can grant variances under section 34-103 for hardship, historic structures or functionally dependent uses, though never within a designated floodway if it would raise flood levels.