Calaveras County Municipal Code Art. III General Provisions

This chapter shall apply to all areas of special flood hazards within the jurisdiction of the County of Calaveras.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).

The areas of special flood hazard identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the "Flood Insurance Study (FIS) for Calaveras County Unincorporated Areas" dated September 5, 1990, with accompanying Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps (FBFMs), dated September 5, 1990, supplemented and updated by Base Flood Elevations determined from the Atkins Study (an automated limited detailed floodplain study performed for and reviewed for Quality Assurance/Quality Control by FEMA in 2016), and all subsequent amendments and/or revisions, are hereby adopted by reference and declared to be a part of this chapter. This Flood Insurance Study and attendant mapping is the minimum area of applicability of this chapter and may be supplemented by studies for other areas which allow implementation of this chapter and which are recommended to the board of supervisors by the floodplain administrator. The study, FIRMs and FBFMs are on file at the Calaveras County Planning Department, Government Center, 891 Mountain Ranch Road, in San Andreas, California.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008; Ord. No. 3084, § 2, 5-23-2017)

No structure or land shall hereafter be constructed, located, extended, converted, or altered without full compliance with the terms of this chapter and other applicable regulations. Violation of the requirements (including violations of conditions and safeguards) shall constitute a misdemeanor. Nothing herein shall prevent the board of supervisors from taking such lawful action as is necessary to prevent or remedy any violation.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).

This chapter is not intended to repeal, abrogate, or impair any existing easements, covenants or deed restrictions. However, where this chapter and another ordinance, easement, covenant, or deed restriction conflict or overlap, whichever imposes the more stringent restrictions shall prevail.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).

In the interpretation and application of this chapter, all provisions shall be:

A. Considered as minimum requirements;

B. Liberally construed in favor of the governing body; and

C. Deemed neither to limit nor repeal any other powers granted under state statutes.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).

The degree of flood protection required by this chapter is considered reasonable for regulatory purposes and is based on scientific and engineering considerations. Larger floods can and will occur on rare occasions. Flood heights may be increased by man-made or natural causes. This chapter does not imply that land outside the areas of special flood hazards, or uses permitted within such areas will be free from flooding or flood damage. This chapter shall not create liability on the part of the board of supervisors, any officer or employee thereof, the state of California or the Federal Emergency Management Agency, for any flood damages that result from reliance on this chapter or any administrative decision lawfully made hereunder.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).

This chapter and the various parts thereof are declared to be severable. Should any section of this chapter be declared by the courts to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the chapter as a whole, or any portion thereof other than the section so declared to be unconstitutional or invalid.

(Ord. No. 2955, 8-19-2008).