Missoula County holds open houses on updated floodplain maps

Missoula County will host community open houses this week and next to review FEMA’s updated floodplain maps, the county’s first comprehensive update in about 50 years. County staff will have maps available and meetings run 6–7:30 p.m. in Missoula, Lolo, Frenchtown and Clinton.

FEMA is updating floodplain maps and Missoula County will see its first countywide updates in about 50 years. Before any changes become official, the county is holding community open houses this week and next. County staff will be on hand with updated maps and there will not be a formal presentation. Some residents have raised concerns about how the new mapping could affect property use, costs and insurance. Key details: - Meetings run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at: Missoula County Fairgrounds (Missoula) on March 23; Lolo School on March 26; Frenchtown Fire Hall on March 30; and Clinton School on March 31. - Rock Creek resident Rae Brown says she learned last June that her home would be shown in the floodplain under the new maps and that she has faced extra costs such as hiring a surveyor and obtaining a base elevation; she cited a 1980 document saying part of the property was not in the floodplain. - Matt Heimel, Missoula County’s floodplain administrator, said environmental changes over the last five decades have reshaped the landscape and that rivers change over time, prompting a need for updated flood-hazard information. - The article notes that more residences and areas are identified as susceptible in a hundred-year flood under the revised mapping. - Once FEMA finalizes maps, the county would generally be required by federal law to adopt them to continue participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, and FEMA is expected to open a comment and appeal period within six to nine months after revised panels around the Smurfit Stone site are available. Summary: The updated maps identify more areas at risk during a hundred-year flood, and residents say that could affect building approvals, costs and insurance requirements. FEMA is expected to open a comment and appeal period within six to nine months after revised panels around the Smurfit Stone site are available. County adoption and final timing remain to be determined.