City of Belvedere
Flood Plain Study
M-Group assisted the City of Belvedere in 2011 with zoning amendments to accommodate changes in the 100-year flood zone. Recent changes to the FEMA floodplain standards require new buildings to be raised to higher elevations than in the past, creating conflicts with existing zoning and presenting challenges to property owners who wish to redevelop or modify their homes. Further complicating matters is that existing ground elevations vary throughout the flood zone, so changes to zoning could have different impacts on properties depending on each property’s elevation in relation to the base flood level.
M-Group worked with a property owner committee to develop recommendations for modifying zoning regulations to accommodate higher flood elevations. The analysis carefully considered a range of issues such as neighborhood character, privacy, views, and equity. For this effort, M-Group prepared several drawings and maps illustrating the conditions and zoning regulations.