(A) General standards. In all special flood hazard areas, the following provisions are required.
(1) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be designed (or modified) and adequately anchored to prevent flotation, collapse and lateral movement of the structure.
(2) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be constructed with materials and utility equipment resistant to flood damage in accordance with the FEMA Technical Bulletin 2, flood damage-resistant materials requirements.
(3) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be constructed by methods and practices that minimize flood damages.
(4) All new electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, air conditioning equipment, and other service equipment shall be located at or above the RFPE or designed and installed to prevent water from entering or accumulating within the components during the occurrence of the base flood. These include, but are not limited to, HVAC equipment, water softener units, bath/kitchen fixtures, ductwork, electric/gas meter panels/boxes, utility/cable boxes, hot water heaters and electric outlets/switches.
(a) Replacements part of a substantial improvement, electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, air conditioning equipment, and other service equipment shall also meet the above provisions.
(b) Replacements that are for maintenance and not part of a substantial improvement, may be installed at the original location provided the addition and/or improvements only comply with the standards for new construction consistent with the code and requirements for the original structure.
(5) All new and replacement water supply systems shall be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of floodwaters into the system.
(6) New and replacement sanitary sewage systems shall be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of floodwaters into the systems and discharges from the systems into floodwaters.
(7) On-site waste disposal systems shall be located and constructed to avoid impairment to them or contamination from them during flooding.
(8) Nothing in this article shall prevent the repair, reconstruction or replacement of a building or structure existing on the effective date of this article and located totally or partially within the floodway, non-encroachment area or stream setback, provided there is no additional encroachment below the regulatory flood protection elevation in the floodway, non-encroachment area, or stream setback, and provided that such repair, reconstruction or replacement meets all of the other requirements of this article.
(9) New solid waste disposal facilities and sites, hazardous waste management facilities, salvage yards and chemical storage facilities shall not be permitted, except by variance as specified in § 7.04(E)(10). A structure or tank for chemical or fuel storage incidental to an allowed use or to the operation of a water treatment plant or wastewater treatment facility may be located in a special flood hazard area only if the structure or tank is either elevated or floodproofed to at least the regulatory flood protection elevation and certified in accordance with the provisions of § 7.04(B)(3).
(10) All subdivision proposals and other development proposals shall be consistent with the need to minimize flood damage.
(11) All subdivision proposals and other development proposals shall have public utilities and facilities such as sewer, gas, electrical and water systems located and constructed to minimize flood damage.
(12) All subdivision proposals and other development proposals shall have adequate drainage provided to reduce exposure to flood hazards.
(13) All subdivision proposals and other development proposals shall have received all necessary permits from those governmental agencies for which approval is required by federal or state law, including § 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, 33 U.S.C. § 1334.
(14) When a structure is partially located in a special flood hazard area, the entire structure shall meet the requirements for new construction and substantial improvements.
(15) When a structure is located in multiple food hazard zones or in a flood hazard risk zone with multiple base flood elevations, the provisions for the more restrictive flood hazard risk zone and the highest BFE shall apply.
(16) Fill shall not be used for structural support. This includes not approving conditional letters or letters of map revision - based on fill (CLOMR-F or LOMR-F).
(1) Residential construction. New construction and substantial improvement of any residential structure (including manufactured homes) shall have the reference level, including basement, elevated no lower than the regulatory flood protection elevation, as defined in Article 11.
(2) Non-residential construction. New construction and substantial improvement of any commercial, industrial or other non-residential structure shall have the reference level elevated no lower than the regulatory flood protection elevation, as defined in Article 11. Structures located in Zones V, VE, A, AE, AH, AO and A99 may not be floodproofed to the regulatory flood protection elevation in lieu of elevation.
(3) Manufactured homes.
(a) New and replacement manufactured homes shall be elevated so that the reference level of the manufactured home is no lower than the regulatory flood protection elevation, as defined in Article 11.
(b) Manufactured homes shall be securely anchored to an adequately anchored foundation to resist flotation, collapse, and lateral movement, either by certified engineered foundation system, or in accordance with the most current edition of the state regulations for manufactured homes adopted by the Commissioner of Insurance pursuant to G.S. § 143-143.15. Additionally, when the elevation would be met by an elevation of the chassis 36 inches or less above the grade at the site, the chassis shall be supported by reinforced piers or engineered foundation. When the elevation of the chassis is above 36 inches in height, an engineering certification is required.
(c) All enclosures or skirting below the lowest floor shall meet the requirements of § 7.05(B)(4).
(d) An evacuation plan must be developed for evacuation of all residents of all new, substantially improved or substantially damaged manufactured home parks or subdivisions located within flood prone areas. This plan shall be filed with and approved by the Floodplain Administrator and the local Emergency Management Coordinator.
(4) Elevated buildings. Fully enclosed area, of new construction and substantially improved structures, which is below the lowest floor or below the lowest horizontal structural member in VE zones:
(a) Shall not be designed or used for human habitation, but shall only be used for parking of vehicles, building access or limited storage of maintenance equipment used in connection with the premises. Access to the enclosed area shall be the minimum necessary to allow for parking of vehicles (garage door) or limited storage of maintenance equipment (standard exterior door), or entry to the living area (stairway or elevator). The interior portion of such enclosed area shall not be finished or partitioned into separate rooms, except to enclose storage areas;
(b) May be temperature-controlled or conditioned;
(c) Shall be constructed entirely of flood-resistant materials at least to the regulatory flood protection elevation;
(d) Shall include, in Zones A, AE, AH, AO and A99, flood openings to automatically equalize hydrostatic flood forces on walls by allowing for the entry and exit of floodwaters. To meet this requirement, the openings must either be certified by a professional engineer or architect or meet or exceed the following minimum design criteria:
(i) A minimum of two flood openings on different sides of each enclosed area subject to flooding;
(ii) The total net area of all flood openings must be at least one square inch for each square foot of enclosed area subject to flooding;
(iii) If a building has more than one enclosed area, each enclosed area must have flood openings to allow floodwaters to automatically enter and exit;
(iv) The bottom of all required flood openings shall be no higher than one foot above the higher of the interior or exterior adjacent grade;
(v) Flood openings may be equipped with screens, louvers or other coverings or devices, provided they permit the automatic flow of floodwaters in both directions; and
(vi) Enclosures made of flexible skirting are not considered enclosures for regulatory purposes, and, therefore, do not require flood openings. Masonry or wood underpinning, regardless of structural status, is considered an enclosure and requires flood openings as outlined above.
(e) Shall, in coastal high hazard areas (Zones VE and AE), meet the requirements of § 7.05(G).
(5) Additions/improvements.
(a) Additions and/or improvements to pre-FIRM structures when the addition and/or improvements in combination with any interior modifications to the existing structure are:
(i) Not a substantial improvement, the addition and/or improvements must be designed to minimize flood damages and must not be any more nonconforming than the existing structure; or
(ii) A substantial improvement, with modifications/rehabilitations/improvements to the existing structure or the common wall is structurally modified more than installing a doorway, both the existing structure and the addition must comply with the standards for new construction.
(b) Additions to pre-FIRM and post-FIRM structures that are a substantial improvement with no modifications/rehabilitations/improvements to the existing structure other than a standard door in the common wall, shall require only the addition to comply with the standards for new construction.
(c) Additions and/or improvements to post-FIRM structures when the addition and/or improvements in combination with any interior modifications to the existing structure are:
(i) Not a substantial improvement, the addition and/or improvements only must comply with the standards for new construction consistent with the code and requirements for the original structure; and
(ii) A substantial improvement, both the existing structure and the addition and/or improvements must comply with the standards for new construction.
(d) Any combination of repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition or improvement of a building or structure taking place during a one-year period, the cumulative cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure before the improvement or repair is started must comply with the standards for new construction. For each building or structure, the one-year period begins on the date of the first improvement or repair of that building or structure subsequent to the effective date of this article. Substantial damage also means flood-related damage sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a ten-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such flood event, on the average, equals or exceeds 25% of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. (The repetitive loss portion is optional, but will be required for flood insurance policy holders to be eligible for increased cost of compliance (ICC) benefits for repetitive losses.) If the structure has sustained substantial damage, any repairs are considered substantial improvement regardless of the actual repair work performed. The requirement does not, however, include either:
(i) Any project for improvement of a building required to correct existing health, sanitary or safety code violations identified by the building official and that are the minimum necessary to assume safe living conditions; or
(ii) Any alteration of a historic structure provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a historic structure.
(6) Recreational vehicles. Recreational vehicles shall either:
(a) Temporary placement.
(i) Be on site for fewer than 180 consecutive days; or
(ii) Be fully licensed and ready for highway use. (A recreational vehicle is ready for highway use if it is on its wheels or jacking system, is attached to the site only by quick disconnect type utilities and has no permanently attached additions.)
(b) Permanent placement. Recreational vehicles that do not meet the limitations of temporary placement shall meet all the requirements for new construction.
(7) Temporary non-residential structures. Prior to the issuance of a floodplain development permit for a temporary structure, the applicant must submit to the Floodplain Administrator a plan for the removal of such structure(s) in the event of a hurricane, flash flood or other type of flood warning notification. The following information shall be submitted in writing to the Floodplain Administrator for review and written approval:
(a) A specified time period for which the temporary use will be permitted. Time specified should not exceed three months, renewable up to one year;
(b) The name, address and phone number of the individual responsible for the removal of the temporary structure;
(c) The time frame prior to the event at which a structure will be removed (i.e., minimum of 72 hours before landfall of a hurricane or immediately upon flood warning notification);
(d) A copy of the contract or other suitable instrument with the entity responsible for physical removal of the structure; and
(e) Designation, accompanied by documentation, of a location outside the special flood hazard area, to which the temporary structure will be moved.
(8) Accessory structures.
(a) Accessory structures shall not be used for human habitation (including working, sleeping, living, cooking or restroom areas);
(b) Accessory structures shall not be temperature-controlled;
(c) Accessory structures shall be designed to have low flood damage potential;
(d) Accessory structures shall be constructed and placed on the building site so as to offer the minimum resistance to the flow of floodwaters;
(e) Accessory structures shall be firmly anchored in accordance with the provisions of § 7.05(A)(1);
(f) All service facilities such as electrical shall be installed in accordance with the provisions of § 7.05(A)(4); and
(g) Flood openings to facilitate automatic equalization of hydrostatic flood forces shall be provided below regulatory flood protection elevation in conformance with the provisions of § 7.05(B)(4)(d).
(h) An accessory structure with a footprint less than 150 square feet or that is a minimal investment of $5,000 or less and satisfies the criteria outlined above is not required to meet the elevation or floodproofing standards of § 7.05(B)(2). Elevation or floodproofing certifications are required for all other accessory structures in accordance with § 7.04(B)(3).
(9) Tanks. When gas and liquid storage tanks are to be placed within a special flood hazard area, the following criteria shall be met:
(a) Underground tanks. Underground tanks in flood hazard areas shall be anchored to prevent flotation, collapse or lateral movement resulting from hydrodynamic and hydrostatic loads during conditions of the design flood, including the effects of buoyancy assuming the tank is empty;
(b) Above-ground tanks, elevated. Above-ground tanks in flood hazard areas shall be elevated to or above the regulatory flood protection elevation on a supporting structure that is designed to prevent flotation, collapse or lateral movement during conditions of the design flood. Tank-supporting structures shall meet the foundation requirements of the applicable flood hazard area;
(c) Above-ground tanks, not elevated. Above-ground tanks that do not meet the elevation requirements shall be not be permitted in V, VE, A, AE Zones. Tanks may be permitted in other flood hazard areas provided the tanks are designed, constructed, installed, and anchored to resist all flood-related and other loads, including the effects of buoyancy, during conditions of the design flood and without release of contents in the floodwaters or infiltration by floodwaters into the tanks. Tanks shall be designed, constructed, installed, and anchored to resist the potential buoyant and other flood forces acting on an empty tank during design flood conditions.
(d) Tank inlets and vents. Tank inlets, fill openings, outlets and vents shall be:
(i) At or above the regulatory flood protection elevation or fitted with covers designed to prevent the inflow of floodwater or outflow of the contents of the tanks during conditions of the design flood; and
(ii) Anchored to prevent lateral movement resulting from hydrodynamic and hydrostatic loads, including the effects of buoyancy, during conditions of the design flood.
(10) Other development.
(a) Fences in regulated floodways and NEAs that have the potential to block the passage of floodwaters, such as stockade fences and wire mesh fences, shall meet the limitations of § 7.05(F).
(b) Retaining walls, sidewalks and driveways in regulated floodways and NEAs. Retaining walls and sidewalks and driveways that involve the placement of fill in regulated floodways shall meet the limitations of § 7.05(F).
(c) Roads and watercourse crossings in regulated floodways and NEAs. Roads and watercourse crossings, including roads, bridges, culverts, low-water crossings and similar means for vehicles or pedestrians to travel from one side of a watercourse to the other side, that encroach into regulated floodways shall meet the limitations of § 7.05(F).
(d) Commercial storage facilities are not considered “limited storage” as noted in this article, and shall be protected to the Regulatory Flood Protection Elevation as required for commercial structures.
(C) Reserved.
(D) Standards for floodplains without established base flood elevations. Within the special flood hazard areas designated as Approximate Zone A and established in § 7.03(B), where no BFE data has been provided by FEMA, the following provisions, in addition to the provisions of § 7.05
(A), shall apply:
(1) No encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements or new development shall be permitted within a distance of 20 feet each side from top of bank or five times the width of the stream, whichever is greater, unless certification with supporting technical data by a registered professional engineer is provided demonstrating that such encroachments shall not result in any increase in flood levels during the occurrence of the base flood discharge.
(2) The BFE used in determining the regulatory flood protection elevation shall be determined based on the following criteria.
(a) When BFE data is available from other sources, all new construction and substantial improvements within such areas shall also comply with all applicable provisions of this article and shall be elevated or floodproofed in accordance with standards in § 7.05(A) and (B).
(b) When floodway or non-encroachment data is available from a federal, state or other source, all new construction and substantial improvements within floodway and non-encroachment areas shall also comply with the requirements of § 7.05(B) and (F).
(c) All subdivision, manufactured home park and other development proposals shall provide BFE data if development is greater than five acres or has more than 50 lots/manufactured home sites. Such BFE data shall be adopted by reference in accordance with § 7.03(B) and utilized in implementing this article.
(d) When BFE data is not available from a federal, state or other source as outlined above, the reference level shall be elevated or floodproofed (non-residential) to or above the regulatory flood protection elevation, as defined in Article 11. All other applicable provisions of § 7.05(B) shall also apply.
(E) Standards for riverine floodplains with base flood elevations but without established floodways or non-encroachment areas. Along rivers and streams where BFE data is provided by FEMA or is available from another source but neither floodway nor non-encroachment areas are identified for a special flood hazard area on the FIRM or in the FIS report, the following requirements shall apply to all development within such areas:
(1) Standards of § 7.05(A) and (B); and
(2) Until a regulatory floodway or non-encroachment area is designated, no encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements, or other development, shall be permitted unless certification with supporting technical data by a registered professional engineer is provided demonstrating that the cumulative effect of the proposed development, when combined with all other existing and anticipated development, will not increase the water surface elevation of the base flood more than one foot at any point within the community.
(F) Floodways and non-encroachment areas. Areas designated as floodways or non-encroachment areas are located within the special flood hazard areas established in § 7.03(B). The floodways and non-encroachment areas are extremely hazardous areas due to the velocity of floodwaters that have erosion potential and carry debris and potential projectiles. The following provisions, in addition to standards outlined in § 7.05(A) and (B), shall apply to all development within such areas:
(1) No encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements and other developments shall be permitted unless:
(a) It is demonstrated that the proposed encroachment would not result in any increase in the flood levels during the occurrence of the base flood discharge, based on hydrologic and hydraulic analyses performed in accordance with standard engineering practice and presented to the Floodplain Administrator prior to issuance of floodplain development permit; or
(b) A conditional letter of map revision (CLOMR) has been approved by FEMA. A letter of map revision (LOMR) must also be obtained within six months of completion of the proposed encroachment.
(2) If § 7.05(F)(1) is satisfied, all development shall comply with all applicable flood hazard reduction provisions of this article.
(3) Manufactured homes may be permitted provided the following provisions are met:
(a) The anchoring and the elevation standards of § 7.05(B)(3); and
(b) The encroachment standards of § 7.05(F)(1).
(G) Coastal high hazard area (Zones VE and AE). Coastal high hazard areas are special flood hazard areas established in § 7.03(B), and designated as Zones VE and AE. These areas have special flood hazards associated with high velocity waters from storm surges or seismic activity and, therefore, all new construction and substantial improvements shall meet the following provisions, in addition to the provisions of § 7.05
(A) and (B):
(1) All new construction and substantial improvements shall:
(a) Be located landward of the reach of mean high tide;
(b) Comply with all applicable CAMA setback requirements.
(2) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be elevated so that the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the lowest floor (excluding pilings or columns) is no lower than the regulatory flood protection elevation. Floodproofing shall not be utilized on any structures in coastal high hazard areas to satisfy the regulatory flood protection elevation requirements.
(3) All new construction and substantial improvements shall have the space below the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the lowest floor free of obstruction or constructed with breakaway walls, open wood latticework or insect screening, provided they are not part of the structural support of the building and are designed so as to break away, under abnormally high tides or wave action without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system or otherwise jeopardizing the structural integrity of the building. The following design specifications shall be met:
(a) Material shall consist of open wood or plastic lattice having at least 40% of its area open;
(b) Insect screening; or
(c) Breakaway walls shall meet the following design specifications:
(1) Breakaway walls shall have flood openings that allow for the automatic entry and exit of floodwaters to minimize damage caused by hydrostatic loads, per § 7.05 (B)(4)(d) (i)-(vi); and
(2) Design safe loading resistance shall be not less than ten nor more than 20 pounds per square foot; or
(3) Breakaway walls that exceed a design safe loading resistance of 20 pounds per square foot (either by design or when so required by state or local codes) shall be certified by a registered professional engineer or architect that the breakaway wall will collapse from a water load less than that which would occur during the base flood event, and the elevated portion of the building and supporting foundation system shall not be subject to collapse, displacement, or other structural damage due to the effects of wind and water loads acting simultaneously on all building components (structural and non-structural). The water loading values used shall be those associated with the base flood. The wind loading values used shall be those required by the North Carolina State Building Code.
(4) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be securely anchored to pile or column foundations. All pilings and columns and the structure attached thereto shall be anchored to resist flotation, collapse and lateral movement due to the effect of wind and water loads acting simultaneously on all building components.
(a) Water loading values used shall be those associated with the base flood.
(b) Wind loading values used shall be those required by the current edition of the State Building Code.
(5) For concrete pads, including patios, decks, parking pads, walkways, driveways, pool decks etc., the following is required:
(a) Pad thickness shall not exceed four inches;
(b) Shall be structurally independent of the primary structural foundation system of the structure and shall not adversely affect structures through redirection of floodwaters or debris; and
(c) Shall be constructed to break away cleanly during design flood conditions, shall be frangible and shall not produce debris capable of causing damage to any structure. (The installation of concrete in small segments (approximately four feet by four feet) that will easily break up during the base flood event, or score concrete in four feet by four feet maximum segments is acceptable to meet this standard); and
(d) Reinforced, including welded wire fabric, shall not be used in order to minimize the potential for concreted pads being a source of debris; or
(e) Provide a design professional’s certification stating the design and method of construction to be used meet the applicable criteria of this section.
(6) For swimming pools and spas, the following is required:
(a) Be designed to withstand all flood-related loads and load combinations.
(b) Be elevated so that the lowest horizontal structural member is elevated above the RFPE;
(c) Be designed and constructed to break away during design flood conditions without producing debris capable of causing damage to any structure;
(d) Be sited to remain in the ground during design flood conditions without obstructing flow that results in damage to any structure;
(e) Registered design professionals must certify to local officials that a pool or spa beneath or near a VE Zone building will not be subject to flotation or displacement that will damage building foundations or elevated portions of the building or any nearby buildings during a coastal flood; or
(f) Pool equipment shall be located above the RFPE whenever practicable. Pool equipment shall not be located beneath an elevated structure.
(7) All elevators, vertical platform lifts, chair lifts and the like, the following is required:
(a) Elevator enclosures must be designed to resist hydrodynamic and hydrostatic forces as well as erosion, scour and waves.
(b) Utility equipment in coastal high hazard areas (VE and AE Zones) must not be mounted on, pass through or be located along breakaway walls.
(c) The cab, machine/equipment room, hydraulic pump, hydraulic reservoir, counter weight and roller guides, hoist cable, limit switches, electric hoist motor, electrical junction box, circuit panel, and electrical control panel are all required to be above RFPE. When this equipment cannot be located above the RFPE, it must be constructed using flood damage-resistant components.
(d) Drainage must be provided for the elevator pit.
(e) Flood damage-resistant materials can also be used inside and outside the elevator cab to reduce flood damage. Use only stainless steel doors and door frames below the BFE. Grouting in of door frames and sills is recommended.
(f) If an elevator is designed to provide access to areas below the BFE, it shall be equipped with a float switch system that will activate during a flood and send the elevator cab to a floor above the RFPE.
(8) Accessory structures, regardless of size or cost, shall not be permitted below elevated structures.
(9) A registered professional engineer or architect shall certify that the design, specifications and plans for construction are in compliance with the provisions of §§ 7.04(B) and 7.05(G)(3) and (4), on the current version of the North Carolina V-Zone Certification form or equivalent local version. Prior to the certificate of compliance/occupancy issuance, the Floodplain Administrator may require that a registered professional engineer or architect certify the finished construction is compliant with the design, specifications and plans for VE Zone construction.
(10) Fill/grading:
(a) Minor grading and the placement of minor quantities of non-structural fill may be permitted for landscaping and for drainage purposes under and around buildings and for support of parking slabs, pool decks, patios and walkways.
(b) The fill material must be similar and consistent with the natural soils in the area.
(c) The placement of site-compatible, non-structural fill under or around an elevated building is limited to two feet. Fill greater than two feet must include an analysis prepared by a qualified registered design professional demonstrating no harmful diversion of floodwaters or wave runup and wave reflection that would increase damage to adjacent elevated buildings and structures.
(d) Non-structural fill with finished slopes that are steeper than five units horizontal to one unit vertical shall be permitted only if an analysis prepared by a qualified registered design professional demonstrates no harmful diversion of floodwaters or wave runup and wave reflection that would increase damage to adjacent elevated buildings and structures.
(e) Fill for structural support is prohibited in the SFHA which should be consistent with § 7.05(A)(17).
(11) There shall be no alteration of sand dunes or mangrove stands which would increase potential flood damage.
(12) No manufactured homes shall be permitted except in an existing manufactured home park or subdivision. A replacement manufactured home may be placed on a lot in an existing manufactured home park or subdivision provided the anchoring and elevation standards of this section have been satisfied.
(13) Recreational vehicles may be permitted in coastal high hazard areas provided that they meet the recreational vehicle criteria of § 7.05(B)(6)(a).
(14) A deck that is structurally attached to a building or structure shall have the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member at or above the regulatory flood protection elevation and any supporting members that extend below the regulatory flood protection elevation shall comply with the foundation requirements that apply to the building or structure, which shall be designed to accommodate any increased loads resulting from the attached deck. The increased loads must be considered in the design of the primary structure and included in the V-Zone Certification required under § 7.04(B)(3)(f).
(15) A deck or patio that is located below the regulatory flood protection elevation shall be structurally independent from buildings or structures and their foundation systems, and shall be designed and constructed either to remain intact and in place during design flood conditions or to break apart into small pieces to minimize debris during flooding that is capable of causing structural damage to the building or structure or to adjacent buildings and structures.
(16) In coastal high hazard areas, development activities other than buildings and structures shall be permitted only if also authorized by the appropriate state or local authority; if located outside the footprint of, and not structurally attached to, buildings and structures; and if analyses prepared by qualified registered design professionals demonstrate no harmful diversion of floodwaters or wave runup and wave reflection that would increase damage to adjacent buildings and structures. Such other development activities include but are not limited to:
(a) Bulkheads, seawalls, retaining walls, revetments and similar erosion control structures; and
(b) Solid fences and privacy walls, and fences prone to trapping debris, unless designed and constructed to fail under flood conditions less than the design flood or otherwise function to avoid obstruction of floodwaters.
(c) Docks, piers, and similar structures.
(H) Standards for Coastal A Zones (Zone CAZ) LIMWA. Structures in CAZs shall be designed and constructed to meet V Zone requirements, including requirements for breakaway walls. However, the NFIP regulations also require flood openings in walls surrounding enclosures below elevated buildings in CAZs (see Technical Bulletin 1, openings in foundation walls and walls of enclosures). Breakaway walls used in CAZs must have flood openings that allow for the automatic entry and exit of floodwaters to minimize damage caused by hydrostatic loads. Openings also function during smaller storms or if anticipated wave loading does not occur with the base flood.
(1) All new construction and substantial improvements shall be elevated so that the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the lowest floor (excluding pilings or columns) is no lower than the regulatory flood protection elevation. Floodproofing shall not be utilized on any structures in Coastal A Zones to satisfy the regulatory flood protection elevation requirements.
(2) All new construction and substantial improvements shall have the space below the lowest horizontal structural member free of obstruction or constructed with breakaway walls, open wood latticework or insect screening, provided they are not part of the structural support of the building and are designed so as to break away, under abnormally high tides or wave action without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system or otherwise jeopardizing the structural integrity of the building. The following design specifications shall be met:
(a) Material shall consist of open wood or plastic lattice having at least 40% of its area open;
(b) Insect screening; or
(c) Breakaway walls shall meet the following design specifications:
(1) Breakaway walls shall have flood openings to automatically equalize hydrostatic flood forces on walls by allowing for the entry and exit of floodwaters. To meet this requirement, the openings must either be certified by a professional engineer or architect or meet or exceed the design criteria in § 7.05(B)(4)(d);
(2) Design safe loading resistance shall be not less than 10 nor more than 20 pounds per square foot; or
(3) Breakaway walls that exceed a design safe loading resistance of 20 pounds per square foot (either by design or when so required by state or local codes) shall be certified by a registered professional engineer or architect that the breakaway wall will collapse from a water load less than that which would occur during the base flood event, and the elevated portion of the building and supporting foundation system shall not be subject to collapse, displacement, or other structural damage due to the effects of wind and water loads acting simultaneously on all building components (structural and non-structural). The water loading values used shall be those associated with the base flood. The wind loading values used shall be those required by the North Carolina State Building Code.
(3) Concrete pads, including patios, decks, parking pads, walkways, driveways and the like must meet the provisions of § 7.05(G)(5).
(4) All new construction and substantial improvements shall meet the provisions of § 7.05(G)(3).
(5) A registered professional engineer or architect shall certify that the design, specifications and plans for construction are in compliance with the provisions of §§ 7.04(B) and 7.05(G)(3) and (4), on the current version of the North Carolina V-Zone certification form or a locally developed V-Zone certification form.
(6) Recreational vehicles may be permitted in Coastal A Zones provided that they meet the recreational vehicle criteria of § 7.05(B)(6)(a).
(7) Fill/grading must meet the provisions of § 7.05(G)(11).
(8) Fill for structural support is prohibited in the SFHA which should be consistent with § 7.05(A)(17).
(9) Decks and patios must meet the provisions of § 7.05(G)(15) and (16).
(10) In coastal high hazard areas, development activities other than buildings and structures must meet the provisions of § 7.05(G)(17).
(Ord. passed 11-2-2011; Ord. passed 11-3-2016; Ord. 2020-01, passed 6-4-2020; Ord. passed 10-1-2020)