{"id":145,"date":"2017-02-15T18:10:49","date_gmt":"2017-02-15T18:10:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/?page_id=145"},"modified":"2025-10-01T11:03:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T15:03:19","slug":"floodplain-regulations","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/flood-hazard-information\/floodplain-regulations\/","title":{"rendered":"Floodplain Regulations"},"content":{"rendered":"

Overview<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The basis for floodplain regulation in Columbus and Bartholomew County is the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).\u00a0 The NFIP is a voluntary program that makes available flood insurance to local property owners that is backed by the federal government and therefore available at a below-market rate.\u00a0 This program is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).\u00a0 Those agencies are responsible for creating flood hazard area maps and establishing minimum regulations for development in floodplains that participating local communities are obligated to enforce.\u00a0 Local communities can adopt regulations that are more restrictive than the FEMA and IDNR minimum requirements.\u00a0 Both Columbus and Bartholomew County have adopted more restrictive local floodplain regulations.\u00a0 Therefore, both jurisdictions are also eligible to participate in FEMA\u2019s Community Rating System (CRS) which further discounts the flood insurance rates for local property owners as a reward for increased vigilance on the part of the community.\u00a0 All Floodplain Development requires a local permit.\u00a0 For permit information, floodplain determinations, or to report illegal dumping in the drain\/illegal floodplain developments.\u00a0 Contact the planning department at (812)376-2550.<\/p>\n

Additional Information:
\n<\/strong>Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)<\/a>
\nIndiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)
\n<\/a>FloodSmart<\/a> —\u00a0A resource created by FEMA to answer questions about flood insurance and related topics.
\nIDNR Floodplain Management Quick Guide<\/a> — A resource created by IDNR to assist local officials and citizens understand why and how to manage development in floodplains to protect people and property.<\/p>\n

Columbus & Bartholomew County Floodplain Regulations:<\/strong>
\nZoning Ordinance\u00a0Chapter 4.7 (Flood Hazard Overlay Zoning District) (PDF)<\/a><\/p>\n

Flood Hazard Area Maps<\/strong><\/h3>\n

FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps:<\/strong>
\nThe Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for Bartholomew County and its Incorporated Areas, including the City of Columbus, can be found at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Flood Map Service Center<\/a>. \u00a0Flood hazard information can also be found on Bartholomew County’s online GIS, Elevate<\/a>. \u00a0Please note that links to the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and Elevate are for reference purposes only. Please contact the Planning Department at 812.376.2550 for official flood hazard determinations.<\/p>\n

Flood Insurance Study (FIS) for Bartholomew County and its Incorporated Areas (PDF)<\/a><\/p>\n

Columbus Supplemental Haw Creek Flood Hazard Area Maps:
\n<\/strong>The severe local flooding of June 7, 2008 resulted in several studies of Haw Creek. \u00a0These studies led to the local development of new flood hazard mapping for Haw Creek based on more accurate information and more detailed modeling methods than currently used for the stream by FEMA. \u00a0The local Haw Creek mapping has also been adopted as part of the Columbus floodplain regulations found in the Zoning Ordinance. \u00a0 These supplemental Haw Creek flood hazard area maps, which were most recently updated in February 2023, can be referenced below:<\/p>\n

North Section (Map 1 of 2)<\/a>
\nSouth Section (Map 2 of 2)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":31,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-145","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-16 15:43:02","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=145"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/145\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.columbus.in.gov\/planning\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}