Stone Harbor Mayor Suzanne Walters announced that the Borough has achieved a “Class 5” designation from the Community Rating System which scores communities on their effective flood mitigation practices. Stone Harbor advances from a “Class 7” to a “Class 5” which increases flood insurance discounts for property owners from 15 percent to 25 percent starting in 2014.
“We are absolutely thrilled with this outstanding rating”, Mayor Walters said. “The Borough’s diligent hard work on flood mitigation practices has been recognized and certified which will translate into hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings on flood insurance premiums for property owners in our community. This was a complete team effort by our administration and department heads to take the necessary steps to accomplish this goal”.
Stone Harbor received verification of the higher Community Rating System (CRS) score in a letter received this week from the Federal Emergency Management Agency/Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration. The Borough achieved 2513 points during the latest review of flood mitigation efforts which resulted in a much higher score. The “Class 5” designation will result in a 25 percent discount on flood insurance premiums for all property owners in the community.
The Borough has taken major and significant steps before and after Hurricane Sandy to improve storm mitigation efforts throughout the community. In 2013, Stone Harbor took steps to improve building elevations to reflect the new flood maps issued for the Jersey Shore from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. During the past year the Borough also enacted a multi-million dollar beach and dune restoration program at no cost to local taxpayers, and improved its emergency notification program with a new emergency alert website, www.stoneharboremergency.com. Stone Harbor achieved points in 16 different CRS point categories, including Elevation Certificates, Outreach Projects, Flood Protection Assistance, Open Space Preservation, Higher Regulatory Standards, Draining System Maintenance, and Flood Warning Program, among others.
“The safety and welfare of our community consistently remains the Borough’s number one priority”, Mayor Walters said. “Improvements to our flood and storm mitigation program is a project that is addressed daily by department heads in Stone Harbor. Deep and significant discounts on flood insurance premiums is a result of the hard work by our community, and could not come at a better time.”
