Last Updated on January 30, 2024
Welcome to 2023! I hope you enjoyed time with family and friends over the holidays and, most importantly, spent your time safely. Looking back to my January 2022 Message, you will recall a similar theme. The San Antonio River Authority (River Authority) is committed to safety, and as the Authority in flood safety, we perform a crucial role in the San Antonio River Basin as a cooperating technical partner for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This role is also critical to our mission – keeping the San Antonio River Basin safe, clean, and enjoyable.
As we kick off the New Year, the River Authority is hosting 13 open houses throughout Bexar County for the public to view new draft floodplain maps alongside a River Authority engineer. As you may have read, the River Authority has been updating the floodplain maps using the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) rainfall estimates, ground surface elevation data from the Texas Natural Resources Information System (TNRIS), and the latest land use data for our community. Due to the constantly changing nature of floodplains, it is important to keep the regulatory floodplain maps as current as possible. Like rivers and creeks, floodplains are dynamic and are influenced by rainfall, development, and bigger-picture climatic shifts. Updating floodplain maps gives individuals and businesses crucial information about their ability to withstand significant rain events.
I encourage you to attend one of the upcoming open houses to learn about your updated flood risk and make informed decisions on flood insurance and how best to protect your property. The River Authority is holding these open houses approximately 18 to 24 months before FEMA’s formal adoption of the floodplain maps to give everyone ample opportunity to make safe, flood-risk-informed decisions.
We will continue our commitment to safe, clean, and enjoyable creeks and rivers into this New Year and beyond. May your 2023 be safe, healthy, and happy,
Derek
