The Township of Brick Floodplain Management Committee, in accordance with the requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP’s) Community Rating System (CRS) Activity 510, has performed its annual review of progress on the implementation of initiatives identified in the Township’s Floodplain Management plan.  The plan has been submitted to Township Council and is available below.

Hardcopies of the plan are available at the Brick Township library and the Township Clerk’s Office. This progress report provides the status of action items and supports the reduction of flood vulnerability in the Township.

TOWNSHIP OF BRICK FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT PLAN - ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT 2023


Floodplain Management Plan 

Township of Brick participates in the Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Flood Insurance Program, Community Rating System (CRS) program. As part of participation in this program, which results in a savings of 20% of the flood insurance premiums for compliant structures in the Township, we are required to prepare an annual report. We are pleased to report, we made much progress this year.
Highlights from the report are provided below:

The performance period for the Floodplain Management Plan became effective on August 9, 2016, with adoption by the Township Council. The Plan had been previously adopted by the Planning Board on March 30, 2016. The initial performance period for this plan will be five years, with an anticipated update to the plan to occur before October 1, 2021. As of this reporting period, the performance progress for this plan is considered to be 58% complete, although some completed actions are ongoing capabilities which need to be revisited each reporting period. At the inception of this reporting period the Floodplain Management Plan identified 140 flood hazard mitigation initiatives. As of this reporting period, the overall progress is summarized below.

• 22 out of 140 initiatives (16%) reported in progress action toward completion during the reporting period.
• 8 out of 140 initiatives (6%) reported no action taken during the reporting period.
• 81 out of 140 initiatives (58%) were completed, either during the reporting period or in previous years.
• Of the 81 completed initiatives, 56 initiatives (40% of the total) were indicated as complete but part of ongoing programs. As these initiatives need to be replicated each year to be considered ongoing, their progress is reported for each individual reporting period.
• 29 out of 140 initiatives (21%) were removed since the inception of the plan due to elimination of a program.
• 13 out of 140 initiatives (9%) were added since the inception of the plan.

The entire plan can be found here: 2021 Township of Brick Floodplain Management Plan

The 2021 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis :  RLAA Resolution2021 Repetitive Loss

The Flood Warning & Response  : Brick Flood Warning Response Plan Flood Warning & Response Plan & Checklist

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS) was implemented in 1990 as a voluntary program for recognizing and encouraging community floodplain management activities that would exceed the minimum NFIP standards. Any community in full compliance with the minimum NFIP floodplain management requirements may apply to join the CRS.

Under the CRS, flood insurance premium rates are discounted to reward community actions that meet the three goals of the CRS, which are: (1) reduce flood damage to insurable property; (2) strengthen and support the insurance aspects of the NFIP; and (3) encourage a comprehensive approach to floodplain management.

A community accrues points to improve its CRS Class Rating and receive increasingly higher discounts. Points are awarded for engaging in any of 19 creditable activities, organized under four categories:

  • Public information
  • Mapping and regulations
  • Flood damage reduction
  • Warning and response

The Community Rating System Provides Incentive for Stronger Floodplain Management and Potential Discounts in Flood Insurance Premiums

Benefits of the CRS

  • Lower-cost flood insurance rates are only one of the rewards a community receives from participating in the CRS.
    • Other benefits include:
      • Citizens and property owners in CRS communities have increased opportunities to learn about risk, evaluate their individual vulnerabilities, and take action to protect themselves, as well as their homes and businesses.
      • CRS floodplain management provides enhanced public safety, reduced damage to property and public infrastructure, and avoids of economic disruption and loss.
      • Communities can evaluate the effectiveness of their flood programs against a nationally recognized benchmark.
      • Technical assistance in designing and implementing some activities is available to community officials at no charge.
      • CRS communities have incentives to maintain and improve their floodplain management plan programs over time.

Floodplain Management Planning

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, to foster a plan to increase the resiliency of the Township of Brick (Township), the Township applied for and received funds from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs through the Post-Sandy Planning Grant Program.  These funds will enable the Township to integrate their hazard mitigation planning into the traditional land use planning of the community. The Post-Sandy Planning Grant Program has provided the Township the opportunity to build on the information included in the recently adopted Ocean County Hazard Mitigation Plan and conduct a more detailed, township-specific study to further characterize flood hazards in the municipality and fine-tune the mitigation actions and recommendations. This effort will allow for development of a comprehensive planning strategy that works toward implementation of short-term recovery and mitigation projects and lay the groundwork for long-term recovery and resiliency.

The Township of Brick’s Floodplain Management Planning Committee is a group of dedicated civic leaders who meet to discuss resiliency planning topics in and around the Township’s flood prone areas.  This committee is active and has been meeting quarterly since 2020. For 2023 , the scheduled meeting dates are as follows:

Thurs 4-5 PM – February 9th

Thurs 4-5 PM – April 27th

Thurs 4-5 PM – June 22nd 

Teus 4-5 PM – September 12th

The planning process will result in development of several township-specific working documents that will be used to reduce vulnerability to hazards, increase safety, and limit damages to both public and private property.  These plans will form the foundation for the community’s long-term strategy to reduce losses from disaster and break the cycle of disaster damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage.  They create a framework for risk-based decision making to reduce damages to lives, property, and the economy from future disasters.

The following deliverables will be developed under this project:

  • Floodplain Management Plan
  • Hazard Mitigation Plan
  • Repetitive Loss Area Analysis
  • Flood Warning and Response Plan
  • Neighborhood-Specific Plans
  • Ordinance Preparation
  • Capital Improvement Plan
  • Master Plan

Frequently Asked Questions


  • What is Hazard Mitigation?

    Hazard Mitigation is any action taken to reduce the loss of life and property by limiting the impact of disasters (natural, technological, and man-made) (www.fema.gov).  It is often considered the first of the four phases of emergency management: mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.

    Mitigation measures fall into the following six general categories and address both public and private property:

    • Prevention: Measures such as planning and zoning, open space preservation, and regulations on development, building codes, storm water management, soil erosion, and sediment control.
    • Property Protection: Measures such as acquisition, relocation, storm shutters, rebuilding, barriers, flood-proofing, insurance, and structural retrofits for high winds and earthquake hazards.
    • Public Education and Awareness: Measures such as outreach projects, real estate disclosure, hazard information centers, technical assistance, and school-age and adult education programs.
    • Natural Resource Protection: Measures such as erosion and sediment control, stream corridor protection, vegetative management, and wetlands preservation.
    • Emergency Services: Measures such as hazard threat recognition, hazard warning systems, emergency response, protection of critical facilities, and health and safety maintenance.
    • Structural Projects: Measures such as dams, levees, seawalls, bulkheads, revetments, high flow diversions, spillways, buttresses, debris basins, retaining walls, channel modifications, storm sewers, and retrofitted buildings and elevated roadways (seismic protection).
  • What is a Floodplain Management Plan?

    A floodplain management plan (FMP) is a community-wide plan that identifies existing and future flood-related hazards and their causes and provides a blueprint for mitigation of the impacts of flooding.  The  FMP ensures that recommended activities meet the goals and objectives of the community and are in coordination with land use and comprehensive planning and that criteria used in land use and development account for the hazards faced by existing and new development. Education of the community about the hazards, loss reduction measures, and the natural and beneficial benefits of floodplains is included in theFMP.

  • What is a Repetitive Loss Area Analysis?

    Repetitive loss area analyses (RLAA) is a more detailed site-specific plan to reduce flood losses in repetitively flooded areas.  It has a highly specific and detailed focus on analyzing areas that experience a significant amount of repetitive losses.

  • What is a Hazard Mitigation Plan?

    The development of a Hazard Mitigation Plan will help facilitate short-term recovery as well as provide the foundation for long-term resiliency. The community land use based hazard mitigation plan will factor in current Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) best management practices on integrating hazard mitigation into local planning.

  • How does this planning process benefit the Township of Brick and its residents?

    The comprehensive floodplain and hazard management, recovery and resiliency planning effort assists the Township of Brick with the following:

    • An increased understanding of natural hazards that the community faces.
    • Reduced long-term impacts and damages to human health and structures and reduced repair costs.
    • Development of more sustainable and disaster-resistant communities.
    • Access to state and federal mitigation grant funding for eligible projects.
    • Increased effectiveness of the CRS program.

    Proactive mitigation leads to sustainable, more cost-effective projects. By contrast, reactive mitigation tends to lead to the “quick-fix” alternatives; it simply costs too much to address the effects of disasters only after they happen. A surprising amount of damage can be prevented if the community anticipates where and how disasters will occur and take steps to mitigate those damages.
    Benefits: A well-prepared plan will:

    • Identify existing and future flood-related hazards and their causes;
    • Ensure that a comprehensive review of all possible activities and mitigation measures is conducted so that the most appropriate solutions will be implemented to address the hazard;
    • Ensure that the recommended activities meet the goals and objectives of the community, are in coordination with land use and comprehensive planning, do not create conflicts with other activities, and are coordinated so that the costs of implementing individual activities are reduced;
    • Ensure that the criteria used in community land use and development programs account for the hazards faced by existing and new development;
    • Educate residents and property owners about the hazards, loss reduction measures, and the natural and beneficial functions of floodplains;
    • Build public and political support for activities and projects that prevent new problems, reduce losses, and protect the natural and beneficial functions of floodplains; and
    • Build a constituency that wants to see the plan’s recommendations implemented.
  • What are the flood hazards in Brick Township?

Floodplain Management Planning Committee

MEMBERTITLEAGENCY
Mayor Lisa Crate Mayor Township of Brick
Tara Paxton, MPA, PP, AICPTownship Planner/CRS Coordinator
Township of Brick
Elissa Commins, PE, PP, CME(Alternate - Kurt Otto)
Township Engineer/Floodplain Manager/ CRS Co-Coordinator
Township of Brick
Joanne Bergin
Township Business Administrator
Township of Brick
Steve Kakovsky
Public Works
Township of Brick
Ron Gaskill (Alt. Joe Pawlowicz)
Brick Township OEM
Brick Township Police Department
Vince Minichino
Councilman
Township of Brick
Vincent PalmieriTownship Planning Analyst Township of Brick
Ed Peters Township GIS Specialist Township of Brick
Chief David Forrester (Alt.Steve Gerling )
Chief of Police
Township of Brick
Amanda Archer
JCNRR
Stakeholder/Academia

L. Stanton Hales, Jr.
Barnegat Bay Partnership
Stakeholder/Watershed Committee
Rob Karl (Alt. Steve Specht)
Brick Township MUA
Brick MUA
Jan Lawlor
Public
Resident
Emil Ranaudo
Public
Resident
Brian Jones
Public
Resident/Teacher MATES
Brianna Kanabrocki
Public
Resident/NJOEM
Anthony Zarilli
Public
Resident
David Chadwick Public Resident/BOA Chairperson
Christina Weaver
Public
Resident

Resources and Links

Flood Map Information Service

The Township of Brick provides services to realtors, lenders, insurers and individuals who need flood zone information. This map service provides basic FIRM (Flood Insurance Rate Maps) information. This information could also include if a property is located within a flood zone, what is the base flood elevation (BFE), depth of floodwaters, wetland information, if the property is in a coastal barrier resource area (COBRA), what the limit of moderate wave action (LIMWA) is for the property and whether there are other mapped environmental resources on the property. This service will also provide information about mandatory purchase of flood insurance.

The Township has trained staff to assist with providing this information through email response to FloodInfo@twp.brick.nj.us or engineer@twp.brick.nj.us
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Know Your Flood Hazard

KNOW YOUR FLOOD HAZARD AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT


Floodplain Maps

The following links provide map information including flood zone designations, flood insurance and community resources:

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Flood Insurance Resources


Flood Preparedness

For updated information for Flood Preparedness, please visit the following links:

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Elevation Certificates

To search if a property has an elevation certificate on file with the Township, please see the attached list below. Properties are listed by property address and block and lot.

Elevation Certificates – Property List 2020

The full list of elevation certificates in Brick Township have been organized through an interactive application called Forerunner ! This application includes an interactive map that specifies floodzone, flood base elevation, building information and parcel information at the convenience from your home or mobile device. Here is a link to the website: https://bricknj.withforerunner.com/

Elevation Certificates available in Brick Township can be directly accessed from Forerunner, here. Search for an address on the website to open and download it. If you have questions or to request additional information, feel free to contact us using this form.

Otherwise to obtain a physical copy of the elevation certificate , please email engineer@twp.brick.nj.us and request a copy of the elevation certificate. Please provide the address or the block and lot of the property in your request.

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