COMMUNITY

FLOOD EDUCATION PAYS OFF FOR HOMEOWNERS IN ORTING

By: Katherine Randle June 9, 2008

City’s high preparedness ranking means lower costs to homeowners

MELISSA SANTOS; melissa.santos@thenewstribune.com

Published: June 2nd, 2008 01:00 AM

The City of Orting’s efforts to educate residents about flood risk now will save homeowners more on flood insurance.

As of May 1, the city has joined the National Flood Insurance Program’s Community Rating System – a federal program that rewards cities that take a proactive approach to flood preparedness.

The program rates cities on how well they address flood risk through planning, regulation and public outreach. Participating cities receive insurance discounts based on their rating, which can range from 1 to 10. Lower numbers represent higher levels of preparedness.

The program rated Orting as a Class 7 community, which will save homeowners within the city limits 15 percent on their insurance premiums. That amounts to an average of $69 a year, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Flanked by the Carbon and the Puyallup rivers, Orting is vulnerable to flooding. It was one of several East Pierce County communities that dealt with severe flooding in November 2006. Record flows in the Carbon blew out 600 feet of levee east of Orting, destroying at least one home and severely damaging others.

“I tell everyone it’s not if it happens again, it’s when,” said Orting building official Ken Wolfe, who coordinates the city’s participation in the rating program.

The rating reflects Orting’s work during the past 11/2 years to prevent the same thing from happening, said Mayor Cheryl Temple.
“This is a very high priority, especially given the flooding we’ve had in the past 10 years,” Temple said.

Wolfe said the city has been preparing to join the program for the past year. Officials have set up information booths at community events and made flood protection information available at the public library.

The city also has improved how it keeps track of building elevations and residents’ requests for information about flooding, Wolfe said.

In the coming year, the city wants to complete a comprehensive plan for flood hazard reduction, which should further improve Orting’s rating and save homeowners an additional 5 percent on their flood insurance.

That plan will include five levee projects on the Puyallup and Carbon rivers and requests for about $340,000 in state and federal grants, Wolfe said.
Kevin Farrell, flood-plain management specialist for the state Department of Ecology, said that few cities join the rating program and receive as high marks as Orting did.

“Typically we see communities come in at only Class 8 or 9, which is only a 5 to 10 percent discount,” Farrell said. “They did a tremendous job pulling all this together.”

Melissa Santos: 253-552-7058