STM voters approve amended flood regulations

Weeks after being notified of its removal from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), the town of Canton took steps to remedy the situation with the adoption of a newly revised set of floodplain regulations at a Special Town Meeting held Monday evening in the CHS auditorium.

Drafted by new Town Planner Connor Murphy with guidance from state and federal partners, the amended Floodplain Overlay District, listed in the zoning bylaw under Section 9.1, includes additional language as well as various minor corrections needed to ensure compliance with the newest Federal Emergency Management Agency regulations and the updated Flood Insurance Rate Map recently released by FEMA. A previous attempt at this effort was undertaken by the Planning Department earlier this year and approved by town meeting voters in May; however, the article was subsequently rejected by the state Attorney General’s Office due to noncompliance, resulting in Canton’s formal suspension from the NFIP early last month.

According to the Finance Committee, due to the timing of the AG’s review and the procedural steps needed to approve a new amendment, it was simply not feasible for the town to avoid a suspension. Officials did seek a waiver or extension from FEMA to allow more time to make the needed changes, but the request was denied. A handful of other Massachusetts communities, including the city of Waltham and three towns in Worcester County (Mendon, Princeton and Rutland), also could not meet the deadline set by FEMA and were suspended along with Canton effective Tuesday, July 8.

As a result, residents who live in designated floodplains within these communities have not been able to renew their flood insurance policies, and any new homebuyers also cannot obtain flood coverage through the NFIP until the suspension is lifted.

To remedy the situation, officials moved quickly to call for Monday’s Special Town Meeting, and the session went briskly with a few dozen residents voting overwhelmingly in favor of the amended overlay and no other action items appearing on the warrant.

Discussion on the article itself was also muted, with resident Bruce Rohr, a former Conservation Commission member, offering up one small tweak in the liability section — a requirement that the town study the value of removing dams as a flood protection measure — which was ruled out of order by Town Moderator Sal Salvatori.

While agreeing that Rohr’s idea had merit, Salvatori said he had some concerns with the “ambiguity” of how it was worded, especially for an article as prescriptive as this one. “My concern is that it goes to the attorney general and it gets rejected again,” he said, adding that he could not remember another instance where Canton officials had to call a “special meeting to fix language in an article that was already addressed at a [previous] town meeting.”

Murphy said that he too was not comfortable adding to the article after working so diligently with federal and state regulators to ensure Canton complied with the requirements of the NFIP. However, he agreed with Salvatori that Rohr’s proposal was actionable and could potentially be incorporated into the work slated to be done this fall on the town’s Master Plan.

In response to another resident’s question about the number of Canton properties that are considered to be a potential flood risk according to the newly released Flood Insurance Rate Map, Murphy said the full list covers approximately 615 parcels and is posted on the town planner’s website (town.canton.ma.us/201/Town-Planner). Overall, he said the higher risk spots are those located “near resource areas, near the western portion of town, by our reservoir and by our ponds.”

“While the total [floodplain] area may have increased just slightly, I do not believe that there’s been an enormous amount of additions parcel wise,” he said.

As for Canton’s standing with the National Flood Insurance Program, the FinCom noted in its warrant report that all of the changes, deletions and insertions contained in the new floodplain article have been “reviewed by the appropriate DCR representatives and other relevant officials to confirm that it will satisfy the requirements to restore FEMA compliance for Canton.”

And with Monday’s affirmative vote, the amended overlay district, according to FinCom, is expected to be “processed promptly by the town to end the suspension and restore the NFIP for Canton.”

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Posted by Jay Turner on Aug 8 2025. Filed under News, Town Government. Both comments and pings are currently closed.