Overlay district regulations—Flood hazard (AE, VE)
310.1. Intent. Flood hazard overlay districts are established to protect lives and property from natural devastation caused by flooding from hurricanes and other such storm activity. Flood hazard overlay districts include the land area of the city which is subject to inundation by the 100-year flood, designated as zones AE or VE and as provided in subsection 303 of this ordinance.
310.2. Development permit required. Within the flood hazard overlay district defined in subsection 310.1, a development permit shall be obtained from the building official for any manmade change to improved or unimproved real estate including, but not limited to, mining, building or other structures, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations. Applicants for development permits within the flood hazard overlay district shall supply the following information to the building official:
(A) Accurate location of the proposed development;
(B) Nature of the proposed development including types of activities proposed, areas to be disturbed, and quantities of materials to be excavated, moved or filled;
(C) Elevation(s) of the site of the proposed development relative to mean sea level datum;
(D) A Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Flood Insurance Program elevation certificate shall be submitted at the completion of foundation; and
(E) A description of the extent to which any existing watercourse will be altered or relocated as a result of the proposed development.
Development permit applications will be reviewed to assure that the proposed development will be reasonably safe from flooding, to assure that the flood-carrying capacity of any altered or relocated watercourse will be maintained, and to assure that the requirements of subsections 310.4, 310.5 and 310.6, as applicable, are met. Prior to approving applications for the alteration or relocation of a watercourse, the building official shall cause notification of adjacent communities, the Rhode Island department of administration, division of planning, or its appropriate successor agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or its appropriate successor agency.
310.3. Floodways adopted. Floodways are those portions of the flood hazard overlay district which must be reserved in order to discharge the 100-year flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than one foot at any point. The floodway areas designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency on the "Floodway Boundary Map—City of Warwick, Rhode Island, March 15, 1982" or any amendment thereto are incorporated in the "zoning map" in accordance with section 303 of this ordinance and are the areas to which the floodway encroachment regulations of subsection 310.4 of this ordinance shall apply.
310.4. Floodway encroachment prohibited. No development proposing fill, new construction, substantial improvement or other encroachment within a floodway as defined and adopted in subsection 310.3 shall be issued a development permit unless it is demonstrated to the satisfaction of the building official that the proposed development will not result in any increase in flood levels during the occurrence of the 100-year flood.
310.5. Flood zone (AE) areas designation. Flood zone (AE) areas are defined as those areas within the flood hazard overlay district that correspond with the 100-year floodplain as designated in section 303 of this ordinance.
310.6. Velocity (VE) zone areas designated. Velocity (VE) zone areas are defined as those areas within the flood hazard overlay district that are located along the city's coastline which are subject to high-velocity waters from hurricane wave wash and wave run-up as designated on the "zoning map" as provided in section 303 of this ordinance.
310.7. Velocity (VE) zone development requirements. Within all velocity (VE) zone areas as designated in subsection 310.6, the following requirements shall apply to any proposed development in addition to all other requirements applicable under this ordinance:
(A) The alteration of sand dunes, where existent, is prohibited;
(B) All new construction shall be located landward of the reach of mean high tide.
(Ord. No. O-23-24, § I, 12-20-23)