Everett, Wash.
Published: Sunday, December 10, 2006

Homes keep rising in flood risk zones

Why do people build in flood plains? Because they can. But sometimes that means taxpayers have to bail out homeowners.

By Jackson Holtz, Jeff Switzer and Diana Hefley / Herald Writers

 GRANITE FALLS - For $369,000, a new dream house can be yours: 1,600 square feet, three-car garage, 9-foot-high ceilings, a fireplace and riverfront views.

It also could be a nightmare. Every few years, the river outside Granite Falls overflows its banks, transforming the neighborhood into a disaster area.

When the Election Day flood hit last month, streets in this part of Snohomish County turned into rushing torrents, sweeping pickup trucks and propane tanks away like logs.

Flooding rivers ripped through 20 communities around the county. Of the nearly $9 million in personal property damage reported, almost half occurred on the banks of the South Fork Stillaguamish outside Granite Falls, records show.

That hasn't stopped the march of development. A week after flooding along Jordan Road, county officials approved construction of another new home just feet away from others that were damaged.

County officials say they try to control the flood risk. They pay attention to where rivers are known to rise and require new homes in flood zones to be built with supersized foundations designed to keep people and property above rushing water.

Can't say no

Government can't simply stop people from building in harm's way, said Craig Ladiser, the county's director of planning and development services.

"If people want to live in a place that at some point or another floods, that's a choice they make," he said. "It's not up to government to say no."

But it is up to government to come to the rescue. In the Nov. 7 flood, emergency crews risked lives to save lives. Taxpayer money may now help people rebuild in the flood plain.

"We're lucky we didn't have anyone killed," Sheriff Rick Bart said.

He questions the wisdom of allowing new homes to be built in areas that flood time and again.

Election Day flooding caused an estimated $28.9 million in damage to homes, businesses and government property countywide.

Flooding along the Stillaguamish in 2003 left behind about $1 million in damage in the neighborhoods near Jordan Road. So far, about $2.5 million in damage has been reported there from the recent flooding.

Since 1991, nearly 150 new houses and mobile homes have been added to the neighborhoods along Jordan Road. More than a quarter of those were built since 2000, according to records maintained by the county assessor's office.

More homes on the way

A week after the Election Day flooding, county officials approved a 1,300-square-foot house four driveways away from a stretch of seven flood-damaged homes near Jordan Road.

It is a pattern of development that has been occurring for years in river basins countywide. Between 1995 and 2003, more than 1,100 permits were issued for building and grading projects in the county's flood-prone areas, including more than 300 single-family homes and nearly 100 double-wide mobile homes, county records show.

New projects are carefully reviewed before they receive permits, and the county's flood management program has been praised for complying with state and federal standards, county officials said.

"We aren't allowing people to live in places they would be killed," Ladiser said.

But Bart said sheriff's deputies, search and rescue volunteers and firefighters risked their lives to rescue people trapped in those neighborhoods by floodwaters.

It is not only risky, it is expensive, he said. During the November flooding, the sheriff's office spent $9,000 alone on helicopter fuel, and it had to ground one of the choppers two months early because of excessive use.

"It costs us money and we have to risk our lives because someone wants a house next to a river," said Bart, who is seeking election as county executive in 2007. "We need to think to the future. The flooding is going to continue and, if we can't protect these homes, maybe we tell people no."

The county already can require that homes be built to withstand flood damage, Ladiser said.

"People will live in places that flood. We can't deny their ability to use their land," he said.

Current law shields the county from liability that may arise from issuing building permits, unless gross negligence can be proved, said Seattle-based attorney Dave von Beck, who specializes in legal issues related to real estate and construction.

But there is cost attached to the decision because issuing building permits in flood areas paves the way for government to bail people out when they need to rebuild, von Beck said.

"It's a policy issue that is frankly hard to reconcile with logic," he said. "Why are taxpayers paying to help people rebuild in flood plains?"

The flood plains "aren't deemed dangerous areas. They have a 1 percent chance of flooding every year," Ladiser said. "Our belief is that if someone builds one foot above the 100-year flood, they won't have damage."

Living near rivers

Harry Fifield has lived along the Stilly since 1998.

"You move down here in the flood plain, you expect it to flood," Fifield said.

Since the November flood, he's been working seven days a week trying to clean up his home. His yard was ruined. A tree house for his grandkids toppled. The antique gazebo in his front yard washed away.

His house did what it was supposed to do. Safe atop a high foundation, his home's living area wasn't damaged. It was the stuff in his storage areas, his yard and the septic tank that floodwaters ravaged. Estimated damage: $25,000.

Next door to Fifield, two new homes sit empty, for sale signs posted in flood-damaged yards. The homes sustained a total of $90,000 damage, owner Chris Hemingson said.

Each home is being offered for $369,000. The flood came right before a pending sale.

"The people ran," he said.

A deck, a propane tank, a portable toilet and all the topsoil in both yards were washed downstream, he said. The living areas were unharmed.

Now, Hemingson said he may have to refinance and wait until next spring or summer before the two homes are sold.

"This is the worst flood we've had in a long time," he said. "There is a point when you wonder if it's worth it."

Changes considered

One problem in flood plain areas like Jordan Road is people illegally converting their homes' oversized foundation crawlspaces into storage and living areas.

"That area is meant to fill up with water and drain out," Ladiser said.

County officials are now considering rules that would require property owners to record on the title that crawlspaces must be kept clear for floodwater.

They also are reviewing their maps of flood-prone areas. This year, water rose in places where it was not expected, Ladiser said.

"We're constantly working at this," he said. "Every year, every flood, we learn new things. We may learn something new from this flood."

Funding relief

Just before Thanksgiving, Gov. Chris Gregoire asked President Bush to provide federal disaster relief to help people rebuild.

It could take weeks or months for the president to respond, said Mike Howard, a regional spokesman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. There's no timetable, he said.

If a federal disaster is declared, most of the assistance will come through U.S. Small Business Administration loans, he said.

Other help could come through FEMA grants, but it's not a blank check, he said.

In some cases, the county has bought land in flood-damaged areas to convince property owners not to rebuild, said Vaughn Collins, a county surface-water engineer.

Even if FEMA does provide help, Karen Crane, 45, isn't sure she'll keep the modest Stillaguamish riverfront home where she's lived for 13 years and where her grandfather lived and died.

She's been through floods before.

"It wiped me out this time," Crane said.

She could spend every dime to lift up her home and stay. Instead, she'll probably do minor repairs and put the property on the market.

"This time is so much different," Crane said. "This time I feel like I got my ass kicked. Don't live on the river, because nature is mean."

Herald writer Scott North contributed to this report.

Reporter Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437 or jholtz@heraldnet.com.

Flood damage reports

Nearly 200 homeowners and 29 business owners submitted detailed flood damage reports to Snohomish County emergency officials after the Election Day flooding. Here is some of what they reported:

"River undermined the foundation. Foundation there but no dirt holding it up. More than 25% lost property 1/16 of acre gone. UPDATED: More undercutting. House is a goner soon. No recovery of structure or effects possible." - Mountain Loop Highway, Granite Falls.

* 15 RVs damaged

* 15 colonies of bees destroyed

* 100 tons of wood fuel damaged

* A latte stand destroyed

* Eight acres of organic cropland destroyed

* Eight cows killed

* Two houses and a cabin swept away

* Drenched carpeting caked with mud

* A damaged swimming pool

* Damaged washers, dryers, ovens and appliances

* $1,000 in hay ruined

* Chicken coop damage

* A ruined large-screen TV

* Cracked or settling foundations

* A damaged 1986 Toyota and other cars and trucks

* Torn away decks and awnings

* Filled ground-floor spaces and basements used as storage

* Buckled hardwood floors

* Drinking well damage

* Raw sewage in a home

* Missing hot tub and hot water heater

* Damage to propane tanks

* Damaged planter boxes

* $3,000 in damaged saws, routers, sanders and drills

* $4,000 in damaged antiques and furniture

* Broken outside shower deck

* $500 in lost jewelry

* Damage to a private bridge

* Damage to five cords of wood

* Fencing crushed or swept away
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA