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Villages C P3&4-CS 950717GRAND HOMES July 17, 1995 Via Fax 226-1946 Pat Atkins Tipton Engineering, Inc. 6330 Belt Line Rd., Ste. C Garltmd, TX 75043 Re: Villages of Coppell, Phases III & IV Dear Pat: The following is the letter we received two weeks ago from Ken Griffin, City of Coppell. Although I have faxed you this letter and have called both you and Richard Hovas repeatedly, I have not been able to reach you, nor have you returned my phone calls. According to FEMA, they never received the as-builts for the dirt work on the projects which is necessary for issuance of the LOMR. I do not know if this was an oversight on your firm's part; however, I would appreciate it if you would look inio the matter and forward the as-built information on to FEMA as quickly as possible. Please notify both Ken Griffin and me when you have forwarded on the information. Thank you for your help. Please call me if you have any questions. SincereLy~ouos, ~ Executive Vice President EDT:jlb cc: Stephen H. Brooks Kenneth M. Griffin, P.E., Ci~ of Coppell Regular U.S. Mail jib wpXsubdiv, copXlomr.ltr 11300 N. Central Expressway, Suite 200, Dallas, Texas 75243-6705 (214) 750-6528 Fax: (214) 750-6849 ~--~ -- --. ,-- ~-----? ,-- _ Coppeil. Texas 75019 The City With A Beaut,ful Future 2,~-462-,3022 July 3, 1995 Mr. Stephen H. Brooks Grand Homes 11300 N. Central Expressway, Suite 200 Dallas, Texas 75243-6705 RE: Villages of Coppell Phases III & IV Dear Mr. Brooks: I have received your letter concerning the Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR) for the referenced property. To help clarify any confusion please be aware that the City of Coppell has a copy of the CLOMR in our file. However, CLOMR has never been the issue in this particular case. The issue has been the final Letter of Map Revision (LOMR). As I am sure you are aware, after construction of the reclamation, the consulting engineer provides soil compaction tests, along with other information to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to show that they have completed the reclamation in conformance with the CLOMR. After FEMA has received that information, then they issue the LOMR. The LOMR is the only document that officially revises the floodplain maps. The CLOMR basically states that if the project is constructed as stated then a change in the map would be warranted. On June 26, 1995, our office received a letter from FEMA concerning the conditional and final letter of map revisions for Villages of Coppell Phases III & IV. Because you were not copied on this letter, I am enclosing a copy for you. Tipton Engineering and myself were copied along with the letter going directly to Stephen Smith. The letter from FEMA states that no information was ever submitted for the LOMR. As has been discussed in the past, not only with yourself but also with Tipton Engineering, our goal in this process is to have the information submitted for the LOMR so that it can be processed through FEMA to bring this issue to an end. In conclusion, providing the City a copy of the CLOMR has not cleared up this particular point at all, as the City has always had the CLOMR. The only thing that will clear this issue up would be providing the information to be submitted to FEMA so that the final LOMR can be provided for Villages of Coppell Phases III and IV. Sincerely, Kenneth M. Griffin, P.E. Assistant City Manager/City Engineer Federal Emergency Management Agency Mr. Steven W. Smith 977 Parker Drive Coppell, Texas 75019 Dear Mr. Smith: This responds to your letters dated April 28, 1995, to Mr. Jack Quarles of our Regional Office in Denton, Texas, and June 2, 1995, to Mr. Alan Johnson, of our Headquarters Office in Washington, DC, requesting information regarding a Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR) issued for the City of Coppell, Texas. The CLOMR was issued on September 8, 1992, for the Villages of Coppell project, Phases 3 and 4. You requested copies of some of the information specified in the CLOMR as required before the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would issue a final determination on revising the Flood Insurance Rate Map once the project was completed. In particular, you requested the following: (1) an "as-built" grading and site plan, certified by a registered professional engineer, for a reclamation area; and (2) a certification that fill placed in the currently effective floodplain as a result of the project is compacted to 95 percent of the maximum density obtainable with the Standard Proctor Test method. Because the data requested in the September 8 CLOMR have not been submitted to FEMA, we cannot provide the as-built grading and site plan and the fill compaction certification that you requested. Property owners and developers who intend to place structures in the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), which is defined as the area that would be inundated by the flood having a l-percent annual chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (base flood), may submit design plans and other engineering data to FEMA for review and comment. FEMA reviews the data, submitted through the community, and comments on the impact the proposed project will have on the effective National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) map if it is constructed as proposed. The CLOMR issued on September 8 was FEMA's response to an April 10, 1992, request from Mr. Kenneth Griffin, P.E., City Engineer. Before issuing CLOMRs, FEMA evaluates proposed projects to determine if minimum NFIP criteria are met. These criteria include requirements that the lowest-floor elevation of a new structure be above the base flood elevation (BFE) and that fill soil used to raise tb~ ground be properly compacted. Once the project is completed, as-built information may be submitted to FEMA and a map revision may be processed. In most cases, FEMA issues a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR). A LOMR, which becomes effective on the date it is issued, is a document issued to officially revise the currently effective NFIP map without physically revising and reprinting the affected map panel(s). It is used to change flood risk zones, floodplain boundary delineations, flood elevations, and planimetric features. To date, we have not received a request for a LOMR for the Villages of Coppell, Phases 3 and 4. For your information, the NFIP requirement for compaction of fill placed to raise the ground surface to or above the BFE, as outlined in Paragraph 65.5(a)(6) of the NFIP regulations (copy enclosed), applies to fill pads prepared for residential or commercial structure foundations and does not apply to filled areas intended for other uses. However, in the case of the Villages of Coppell, Phases 3 and 4, fill pads were not identified on the site plan; therefore, the compaction requirement identified in the September 8 CLOMR was for all areas proposed to be removed from the floodplain. A LOMR to remove structures from the floodplain could be requested at this time if the elevations and locations of building foundations are identified and fill compaction for the foundations are provided. Other requirements of Paragraph 65.5(a)(6) of the NFIP regulations include demonstration that the fill is adequately protected from the forces of erosion or scour. These additional requirements were met by proposing fill slopes of less than one and one half horizontal to one vertical (actual: three horizontal to one vertical), and grass cover for the fill slopes, which is required for floodwater with velocities less than 5 feet per second. If you have any other questions regarding this matter, please contact Mr. Don Ellison of our Regional Office, at (817) 898-5161, or Mr. Alan Johnson of my staff in Washington, DC, either by telephone at (202) 646-3403 or by facsimile at (202) 6464596. ; Mitigation Directorate / cc: ~ Mr. Kenneth Griffin, P.E. City Engineer City of Coppell Mr. Richard Hovas, P.E. Tipton Engineering, Inc.