Fairfield Posts Updated Review Of Town's Floodplain Management Plan

News release from the Town of Fairfield:

FAIRFIELD, CT — First Selectman Bill Gerber announced [on Thursday] that an updated review of Fairfield’s Floodplain Management Plan is available for public review on the Town’s Plan and Zoning Department webpage under the Forms and Documents tab. Fairfield’s flood reduction action items are located within MetroCOG’s multi-town Hazard Mitigation Plan, updated in August 2024, which is available at https://rebrand.ly/metrocog-floodprotection.

Town staff from multiple departments as well as the Town’s Flood Prevention, Climate Resilience, and Erosion Control Board (FERB) collaborated on the review effort of action items which include prevention, property protection, floodplain management regulations, structural and natural systems protection, education and awareness, and emergency management initiatives to help reduce Fairfield’s future flood risk, protect lives, and reduce property damage. Town Plan and Zoning staff presented the update to the Board of Selectman at their February 5, 2025 meeting.

The Town has made progress on the following action items as part of the Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan including:

• Riverside Drive Bridge and Turney Creek Tide Gate System is anticipated to finish construction in summer 2025.
• RFP for Fairfield Town-wide Resilience Plan awarded.
• Permits are still pending for Villa Avenue and Fairchild Wheeler detention projects in the Rooster River corridor. Construction expected to start in spring 2025.
• East Trunk Line Sanitary Sewer project starting in 2025.
• Perry’s Green Bulkhead repair is almost complete.
• The Conservation Department has actively been acquiring tidal marshland properties to ensure that these are protected from development in perpetuity.

The Town of Fairfield participates in FEMA’s voluntary Community Rating System (CRS) which awards a rating to communities that go above and beyond the minimum requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) flood plain management requirements. Fairfield’s floodplain management efforts result in a 10 percent discount for its 1,564 policyholders or approximately $204,490 in annual savings. Fairfield is only one of thirteen communities in the State that currently participates in the program.