Earlier this month, FEMA issued new preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (pFIRMs) for King County.  As expected, those maps show dramatically different floodplain boundaries as compared to the existing FIRMs.  This is due in part to the de-accreditation of the majority of levees along the Green River in south King County.  These changes will have dramatic impacts on properties newly located in the floodplain.  Specifically, property owners should expect to purchase flood insurance and will face new, substantially more restrictive development regulations when they go to develop or redevelop their properties.  FEMA expect to hold public meetings in January to explain the new pFIRMs, the appeal options, and the maps’ impacts on properties newly mapped as within the flood plain.