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• <br />• <br />Section 17.56 of the Louisville Municipal Code regulates the floodplain. Those regulations were <br />most recently amended in 1995 and comply with the Federal Emergency Management Agency <br />recommended standards. Section 17.56.150 allows certain open uses (including parking lots) as <br />permitted uses within the floodplain, except when they require the use of fill material. Because <br />this parking lot construction proposes a limited amount of fill, the proposal requires approval of <br />a floodplain development permit by the Board. The specific requirements that must be met are <br />contained in Sections 17.56.160 A and C. The March 20 letter from Paul Weller summarizes the <br />extent of the applicant's proposed work in the floodplain and addresses those specific require- <br />ments. <br />17.56.160.A: The applicant, a registered professional engineer, has provided certification that the <br />proposal would not increase the water surface elevation of the 100-year flood by more than one <br />foot. <br />17.56.160. C. 2: The proposed final grades are all within one foot of the existing (post restoration) <br />grades of the floodplain. The proposed fill has the purpose of allowing construction of a parking <br />area with proper slopes and drainage. <br />17.56.160. C.3: The proposed fill is not in the floodway nor near the primary floodway. As such, <br />it does not encroach on areas of the floodplain with `significant flow' during a flood. <br />17.56.160. C. 4: A tall fescue sod is proposed to protect the adjacent landscaped area from erosion. <br />Staff has referred this application to adjacent communities, the Colorado Water Conservation <br />Board, the Urban Drainage and Flood Control District, and the local office of FEMA. None of <br />those agencies have expressed any objections to the proposed work. <br />STAFF RECOMMENDATION: <br />While the City does not generally encourage development activity in the floodplain, this proposed <br />work is fairly minor and fully complies with City's Floodplain Zoning regulations. The overall <br />Coal Creek Business Park development maintains the Coal Creek floodplain, and is providing a <br />public access easement for an extension of the Coal Creek Trail, public parking for the trail and <br />several access points. Staff is recommending approval of the floodplain development permit to <br />allow construction of a 4,300 square foot portion of the parking lot within the regulatory <br />floodplain, with the following conditions: <br />1. That this approval is only valid if a Final PUD is approved by City Council authorizing <br />the parking lot to be constructed as generally proposed here; <br />2. That an erosion control plan is submitted for City review and approval prior to any <br />grading or construction activity in the floodplain; and <br />2 <br />