Latest FEMA Flood Map Shrinks Hoboken's Highest-Risk Zones

While the majority of Hoboken remains in a flood zone, according to the revised Federal Emergency Management Agency flood maps released earlier this week, most of the city's highest-risk flood zones have been converted to less-hazardous zones, meaning reduced insurance premiums for affected property owners.

Across the county, the highest-risk V or velocity zones shrunk by 76 percent from 2,030 acres to 480 acres, and are now largely designated A Zones in the agency's preliminary work maps, which replace the Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps released in December.

The preliminary work maps, which were released Monday for Hudson, Monmouth, Ocean and Atlantic counties following close consultation with local and state officials, more precisely reflect current flood hazards and conditions that could affect flood risk, FEMA said in a statement.

Hoboken mayoral candidate and 33rd District Assemblyman Ruben Ramos said he was pleased that FEMA and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection had worked together to address the concerns of residents in their flood map revisions.

"The initial drafts of the flood maps would have made the City of Hoboken unlivable by forcing residents to pay unreasonably high insurance rates," Ramos said in a statement.

The non-profit organization Fund for a Better Waterfront, however, doesn't expect the amount that the vast majority of residents pay in flood insurance to change as a result of the map revisions.

FBW, a steadfast opponent of privatizing Hoboken's waterfront, notes that because the revised flood map's diminished V areas pertain to only a few acres along Hoboken's coastline — encompassing primarily parks and vacant land, including several potential development sites — there won't be an appreciable decrease in flood insurance premiums for most residents.

Mayor Dawn Zimmer expressed dissatisfaction that, even with the revised flood maps, about three-quarters of Hoboken property owners will still need to purchase flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program.

"While I appreciate FEMA’s willingness to incorporate our feedback and make incremental improvements to these maps, FEMA's new flood area designations ultimately mean more of our residents will need to participate in the unfair National Flood Insurance Program, which ignores the needs of urban areas like ours," she said in a statement. "I have met with officials at the National Flood Insurance Program and been advised that if we can demonstrate that we are protecting our city, then we could get a “Shaded X” designation for Hoboken, which would enable us to get out of paying for flood insurance."

FEMA officials have said that while the revised maps, based on a 100-year storm (i.e. a storm with a 1% chance of occurring each year), are only the latest iteration in the agency's ongoing process of creating final Flood Insurance Rate Maps, they are not likely to change significantly going forward.

"We are confident in what we are delivering now is a true depiction of what those zones are and the risk in the area," Bill McDonnell, FEMA's mitigation branch director for New Jersey, said Monday during a media conference call.

FEMA had been in the process of updating its flood maps for
the New Jersey coast before Superstorm Sandy hit last year and soon afterward released Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps using incomplete information gleaned from its pre-Sandy study as a guide for property owners who wanted to rebuild immediately.

The earliest advisory maps, which included more extensive flood zones and flood elevations higher than the preliminary maps released Monday, were drawn up conservatively by design to accelerate reconstruction efforts and provide a rough insurance guide for residents.

As a result, FEMA has been criticized for placing too many homes in V Zones and raising the alarm of residents — and as a result their elected representatives —who were concerned that property elevation and insurance costs would skyrocket.

Other critics of the FEMA maps, like New Jersey Sierra Club director Jeff Tittel, take the opposite approach — arguing that the agency's maps underplay the threat of global warming and are not conservative enough.

“FEMA does not look at climate change, sea level rise, the increased frequency of storms, or storm surges,” said Tittel, adding that Sandy wasn't even a category 1 hurricane when it hit New Jersey and that more powerful storms may be on the horizon. "The problem with the FEMA mapping is that it is like driving down the highway at 80 miles an hour and only looking in the rearview mirror.  

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The interactive map above, created by WNYC, allows you to hone in on a particular location in New Jersey or New York and see what sections were designated as highest-risk (shown in black) on the previous FEMA flood maps (Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps) versus the just-released preliminary work maps.