SARASOTA COUNTY – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will host a series of open houses to help citizens review Preliminary FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). All Sarasota County residents, including both home and business owners, are invited to attend one of the upcoming public meetings with FEMA, county and municipality representatives to learn about their own flood risk, view the newly updated preliminary flood insurance rate maps and learn how individual properties will be impacted by the changes. Realtors, mortgage lenders, surveyors and insurance agents are among those in the community who are also encouraged to attend. These flood risk changes do not impact hurricane evacuation levels which can also be verified by visiting scgov.net (keywords hurricane preparedness).
Public meetings with city, county and FEMA representatives will be held at the following dates and locations:
- March 4 – Venice Community Center.
- 326 Nokomis Road, Venice.
- 4 – 7 p.m.
- March 5 – State College of Florida, Selby Room, Venice campus.
- 8000 Tamiami Trail, Venice.
- 9 a.m. to noon.
- March 5 – Suncoast Technical College (SCTI), Conference Center.
- 4748 Beneva Road, Sarasota.
- 4 – 7 p.m.
FEMA specialists will be on site to answer questions related to flood insurance, engineering, appeals, map changes and more. All Sarasota County residents are encouraged to attend one of these informational sessions.
Additional public meetings with Sarasota County staff are planned for the following times and locations:
- March 12 – South Venice Civic Association Center.
- 720 Alligator Drive, Venice.
- 4 – 7 p.m.
- March 19 – Suncoast Technical College (SCTI), Conference Center.
- 4748 Beneva Road, Sarasota.
- 4 – 7 p.m.
Property owners can view the interactive Flood Risk Map here to see if their property may be impacted. No formal presentations will be given; residents may attend any workshop that is convenient. Attendees do not need to make an appointment but should remember to bring their elevation certificates, if possible. Standard homeowner, business owner and renter insurance policies don’t cover flood damage, making flood insurance an important consideration for everyone. Visit floodsmart.gov or call 1-888-379-9531 for more information or to locate a local insurance agent. For more information on the flood map updates or open houses, call the Sarasota County Contact Center at 941-861-5000 or visit scgov.net (keywords flood maps).
Sarasota County prohibits discrimination in all services, programs or activities. View the complete policy at www.scgov.net (keywords: ADA compliance)