MONROE COUNTY: State, federal reps outnumber property owners at open house
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| Waterloo resident Harvey Hoffmann looks at a flood map at the open house July 22 in Waterloo. Joe Leicht photo |
And a state/federal agency open house July 22 in Waterloo seemed to prove it.
Attendance figures were not available, but throughout the open-house style flood risk information meeting hosted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, officials and their aides consistently outnumbered concerned citizens.That’s not to say there weren’t any locals who wanted to take a look at the federal government’s official flood-risk maps.
The maps and whether they identify lands as being at risk for flooding or not translate directly to the availability and cost of flood insurance.
Monroe County’s decision last year to enter an agreement with St. Clair County and Madison County to mitigate within 10 year deficiencies in the area’s levee systems spared the area the "at risk" designation.
Curtis and Mary Lou Mosbacher of Fults, who attended the open house, seemed relieved.
"We’ve got flood insurance and were just told it can always go up every year. Ours has been going up every year since 1993 when it was about $400. We just paid about $520 for insurance this year," Curtis Mosbacher said.
Tobin Search, a local insurance professional, said, "it was going to make a big difference (if the at-risk designation had come.) I’m trying to learn as much as possible about the rules and regulations affected by this."
Mary Ellen Norman of Columbia said, "I’m always interested in flooding. I remember 1993 was devastating for some people. (The agencies at the open house) have given me some good ideas even for people who are not in a situation of being flooded but just when you’d have eight hours of rain that seeps into your foundation."
"I didn’t know these maps would have the flood stages for all the creeks, too, but that’s in there. I have some property right on the Monroe/St. Clair County line, but I’m probably more curious than affected," Harvey Hoffmann of Waterloo said.
Cat Langel of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the open house "is an opportunity for citizens to take a look at the preliminary flood insurance maps and evaluate their risk in terms of flooding."
Subsequent open houses took place consecutive days in Collinsville and Belleville.
