Unified Development Ordinance - Currituck County Government

Chapter 7: Environmental ProtectionSECTION 7.4: FLOOD DAMAGE PREVENTIONSubsection 7.4.6: Standards(b)(c)(d)(e)Be served by access that is the minimum necessary to allow forparking of vehicles (garage door) or limited storage of maintenanceequipment (standard exterior door), or entry to the living area(stairway or elevator);Not be finished or partitioned into separate rooms, except to enclosestorage areas;Be constructed entirely of flood resistant materials, in accordance withTechnical Bulletin 2: Flood Damage Resistant Materials Requirements,at least to the regulatory flood protection elevation;Include flood openings, when located in the A and AE flood zones, thatautomatically equalize hydrostatic flood forces on walls by allowing forthe entry and exit of floodwaters. To meet this standard, the openingsmust either be certified by a professional engineer or architect tomeet or exceed the following minimum design criteria:(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)A minimum of two flood openings on different sides of eachenclosed area subject to flooding;The total net area of all flood openings must be at least onesquare inch for each square foot of enclosed area subject toflooding;If a building has more than one enclosed area, each enclosedarea must have flood openings to allow floodwaters toautomatically enter and exit;The bottom of all required flood openings shall be no higherthan one foot above the adjacent grade;Flood openings may be equipped with screens, louvers, orother coverings or devices, provided they permit theautomatic flow of floodwaters in both directions;Enclosures made of flexible skirting are not consideredenclosures for regulatory purposes, and, therefore, do notrequire flood openings. Masonry or wood underpinning,regardless of structural status, is considered an enclosure andrequires flood openings as outlined above; and(f)Be either free of obstruction or constructed with breakaway walls,open wood latticework, or insect screening, when located in a VEzone. To meet this standard, breakaway walls shall not be part of thestructural support of the building and be designed so as to breakaway,under abnormally high tides or wave action without causing damage tothe elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation systemor otherwise jeopardizing the structural integrity of the building, inaccordance with the following:(i)(ii)Design safe loading resistance shall be not less than 10 normore than 20 pounds per square foot; orBreakaway walls that exceed a design safe loading resistance of20 pounds per square foot (either by design or when sorequired by State or local codes) shall be certified by aregistered professional engineer or architect that thebreakaway wall will collapse from a water load less than thatCURRITUCK COUNTY, NC UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE7.27