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Letter to the editor

Tall order for homeowners

That enclosure under your stilt home may be illegal, FEMA says.

By TERRI BRYCE REEVES
Published June 24, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Ted McLaren | Times] Amy Poteet stands for a portrait on the balcony of her Oldsmar home on Thursday afternoon.

OLDSMAR - Those who own a stilt home with an enclosure on the ground floor may soon have to say goodbye to their home office, billiards room or spare bath.

FEMA says they are illegal.

That was the unwelcome message homeowners received last week in a meeting with a Federal Emergency Management Agency official from Atlanta.

In late April, city officials wrote to 16 Oldsmar residents in flood hazard areas telling them they may be in violation of the city's floodplain management rules. The letter asked for residents' permission to inspect the inside of the enclosures.

Angry homeowners showed up at a City Council meeting in May asking why. In response, city officials summoned David Thomas, a natural hazard program specialist with FEMA, to answer questions about the city's participation in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Following his presentation to the City Council last week, Thomas met with some residents to try to explain the code and the reasons for it.

Floods, which Thomas said are the most common and costly disaster, are known to wash away downstairs enclosures and their contents.

"People want to get reimbursed for these items, " Thomas said. "And stuff floats. If it damages someone else's home, that is a problem."

So allowing those illegal structures would make all of Oldsmar more risky and expensive to insure. The regulations are designed to lower flood insurance premiums for everyone.

"This community being more restrictive saves each home about $140 a year, " Thomas said.

* * *

Thomas' visit did little to pacify Amy Poteet, a homeowner who bought a stilt home built in 1982, with a "mother-in-law suite" below.

"This doesn't make any sense, " she said. "When we bought our home, we went to City Hall to make sure the enclosure wasn't a problem and they told us as long as we didn't rent it out, it was fine. We would have never bought the house to begin with if we thought this would happen."

Poteet said the enclosure, used as a spare bedroom and storage area, would stay.

"I don't know what it would cost to have all the electrical and plumbing taken out, but we're not going to pay for it, " she said. "We've been taxed for a four-bedroom, three-bath home all along, so are they going to refund part of my taxes?"

The city's code, based on FEMA policy, states that no habitable area can be created below the base flood elevation. Enclosures under the stilt homes are allowed only for parking, limited storage and a stairway or elevator into the main living area.

Enclosures can't be heated or cooled or have working plumbing, Thomas said.

To comply with the code, Poteet and her husband, Scott, would have to remove everything that made the room habitable. Since their home was built and modified before 1986, they won't be required to install a minimum of two vents in the walls to permit the automatic flow of floodwater in both directions - something newer homes would be required to do.

City engineer Bill Proses, who has visited some of the properties, had questions, too.

"Who makes the judgment call as to what is considered storage?" he said. "I'm the guy who has to enforce it. That's why I'm worried. I'm going to have to tell them to move grandma out."

Grills and lawn mowers are okay, Thomas said.

But in his inspections, Proses said he's also seen living rooms, rec rooms, bathrooms and partitions - all forbidden.

What about pool tables, bars and electrical appliances like television sets, Proses asked.

No, Thomas said.

* * *

Oldsmar joined the National Flood Insurance Program in 1971. In 2005, the city completed its five-year update of its Community Rating System.

FEMA determined that Oldsmar should be moved from Class 7 to Class 6.

For residents, that translates into a 20 percent reduction in flood insurance premiums, according to city officials. Thomas said the restrictions would save each home an average of $140 per year.

But homeowners who don't comply put the community's Class 6 rating at risk - meaning all residents would have to pay more for flood insurance - and are in danger of losing their own flood insurance as well as their federally backed loans, Thomas said.

Still, the 16 residents who received warning letters feel singled out.

"Why are they bothering us?" homeowner Carole Mason wanted to know.

Poteet said there are dozens of other homes with the same issues that haven't been targeted.

Proses said city staff looked at numerous homes in flood hazard areas.

"These 16 were the only ones that had noticeable violations, " he said.

Proses said homeowners with enclosures already seen by city staff would receive a letter informing them of what they need to do to come up to code. They will have 90 days to do so.

The rest will receive another letter requesting permission to do an inspection - or face a hearing with the Code Enforcement Board.

Homeowner Jeff David, owner of Gulfcoast Concrete Services, feels FEMA and the city shouldn't concern itself with the home office below his Key West-style stilt home on Shore Drive.

"My house is my responsibility, " he said. "Even if we get flooded and they don't want to pay? Okay, fine. I'm responsible. If something floats away and damages someone else's home, I'll deal with that. I don't want to have to change my house around for a flood that may come in 20 years.

"I'm willing to work with the city, " he said, "but if they tell me to tear it out, we're going to have an argument."

Fast Facts:

How the FEMA program works

The National Flood Insurance Program's (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS) is a voluntary incentive program that recognizes and encourages community floodplain management activities that exceed the minimum NFIP requirements. By participating, communities can decrease their flood insurance premiums.

Communities are put into one of 10 classes based on credit points earned for flood management activities. Flood insurance premiums are discounted in 5 percent increments. Class 1 gets the highest premium reduction, at 45 percent; Class 10 gets no premium reduction. After its 5-year CRS update in 2005, Oldsmar was moved from Class 7 to Class 6, meaning a 20 percent reduction in premiums. That means residents will save an average of $140 a year. Officials say residents who fail to comply with FEMA rules put the city's rating at risk.

Source: www.fema.gov

[Last modified June 23, 2007, 22:01:21]