Floodplain Protection

About

The City of Baytown recognizes that areas of the city are subject to periodic flooding which results in the loss of life and property, health and safety hazards, disruption of commerce and governmental services and extraordinary public expenditures for flood protection and relief, all of which adversely affect the public health, safety and general welfare. Many of these flood losses are created by the cumulative effect of obstructions in floodplains, which cause increases in flood heights and velocities, and by the encroachment of flood hazard areas by developments and improvements that are vulnerable to floods and hazardous to other lands because they are inadequately elevated, floodproofed or otherwise protected from flood damage.

Our historical partnership with FEMA and participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) allows our residents to obtain federal flood insurance at a discounted rate. The City of Baytown is currently seeking millions of dollars in federal, state and local grants for drainage improvement projects that will help reduce flooding and the impacts of flooding. Without our participation in the NFIP, Baytown residents would not be eligible for federally-backed flood insurance, increased cost of compliance grants, or emergency federal aid after a disaster; nor would the city be eligible for the drainage improvement grants.

  1. Our Goal

It is our goal to promote the public health, safety and general welfare and to minimize public and private losses due to flood conditions in specific areas by enforcing provisions designed to:

  • Protect human life and health;
  • Minimize expenditures of public money for costly flood control projects;
  • Minimize the need for rescue and relief efforts associated with flooding and generally undertaken at the expense of the general public;
  • Minimize prolonged business interruptions; and
  • Minimize damage to public infrastructure such as water and gas mains, electric, telephone and sewer lines, streets and bridges located in floodplains.

by:

  • Restricting or prohibiting uses that are dangerous to health, safety or property in the times of flood or that cause excessive increases in flood heights or velocities;
  • Require that uses vulnerable to floods, including facilities which serve such uses, be protected against flood damage at the time of initial construction;
  • Control the alteration of natural floodplains, stream channels and natural protective barriers, which are involved in the natural accommodation of floodwaters;
  • Control filling, grading, dredging and other development which may increase flood damage; and
  • Prevent or regulate the construction of flood barriers which will unnaturally divert floodwaters to other lands.
  1. Floodplain Development Permit Requirements
  1. Mapping Resources
  1. info
  1. Preparedness
  1. Substantial Improvement Requirements
  1. Flood Insurance
  1. Flood Safety
  1. Flood Hazard
  1. No Dumping
  1. Natural & Beneficial Functions