By JAMES MITCHELL
Sunday Times Newspapers
LINCOLN PARK — Revisions made last month to the city’s ordinance regarding flood protection were made at the request of federal authorities, and not in response to the flooding in summer 2011 which, for some residents, remains unresolved.
Included in the agendas for December meetings of the Lincoln Park City Council was revised language in a city ordinance governing flood protection. Dennis Chegash, building and engineering director, said the changes were mandated by the Federal Emergency Management Administration.
“The ordinance has to do with FEMA,” Chegash said. “Every so often they re-introduce maps that reflect changes in flood areas.” The maps, Chegash said, required approval as official records. Lincoln Park had no adjustments other than a small area near Dix and Outer Drive, Chegash said, which was not affected by summer flooding.
The ordinance “didn’t really have any impact on what happened earlier in the year,” Chegash said. “This is mandated by FEMA. The city’s been in compliance since 1982, and we have to maintain compliance for the flood insurance program.”
Mayor Patricia Diaz Kruase said the claims were filed by residents following a round of summer floods that caused damage to more than 150 houses. Several unresolved claims remain under investigation, Diaz Krause said.
(James Mitchell can be reached at [email protected])