Southampton, NY Hurricane Preparedness: Flood Elevation (2026)

Beyond the general AE Zone elevation standard, the Town Board wrote a separate, stricter set of construction rules in § 169-17 for residential structures in coastal high-hazard areas and Coastal A Zones, the ocean- and bay-facing hamlet shoreline exposed to hurricane wave action and storm surge. New construction and substantial improvements must be elevated on pilings, columns or shear walls so the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member sits at or above two feet above the base flood elevation shown on the Town's FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map adopted in § 169-6, so floodwater and wave runup can pass beneath the building without impeding flow.

Section 169-17B requires the structural design to account for wind and water loads acting simultaneously during the base flood, including wave inertia, drag and impact forces from waterborne storm debris, using wind loading values from the Building Code. Foundation standards in § 169-17C bar spread footings and fill material for structural support, and pile foundation design under § 169-17D sets a minimum pile-spacing-to-diameter ratio of eight to one, a maximum twelve-foot on-center spacing for load-bearing wood piles, and minimum pile penetration to five feet below mean sea level where the base flood elevation is +10 feet or less, or ten feet below mean sea level where it exceeds +10 feet.

The space below the lowest floor in VE Zones must be free of obstruction or built with breakaway walls, lattice or insect screening designed to collapse under storm loads, and may be used only for parking, access or storage, never human habitation, per § 169-15B(4).