Halifax gets first look at 'long overdue' Sackville floodplain changes

Halifax council has got its first look at new rules proposed for the Sackville rivers floodplain that would control development along the waterways — in some areas for the first time.

On Tuesday, council passed the first reading of proposed changes to municipal planning strategies and land-use bylaws for communities along the Sackville River and Little Sackville River, including Bedford, Lower Sackville and Middle Sackville.

It's the first time the planning rules have been changed in the area since the 1980s or early 1990s.

"It's very important and long overdue, and let's get it done. Let's get it done right now," Walter Regan, past president of the Sackville Rivers Association, said in an interview Tuesday after the matter came before council.

Residents can visit Halifax's online mapping tool to type in their address and see if, and where, they fall within proposed new floodplain areas.

The municipality has laid new floodplain maps — a 1-in-20-year map applying to areas with a five per cent chance of flooding in any given year and a 1-in-100-year map applying to areas having a one per cent chance of flooding — over the original boundaries from the 1980s.

The maps are based on a 2017 study that was updated just last year and takes climate change models into account.

Regan said accurate flood maps protect people looking to buy property, and protect taxpayers from being on the hook for repairs to current homes.

"And people who know they're on a floodplain can now start to take precautions to protect their house as much as possible," he said.

The most restrictive 1-in-20-year floodplain map has expanded into some neighbourhoods where it wasn't previously, or moved out of areas where it was created in the 1980s. A staff report said the latest maps are based on more accurate data, but flood-proofing is still required in areas in the 1980s flood zones.

Within the 1-in-20 zone, also called the floodway overlay, existing non-residential uses, parks, recreation, trails and parking lots are allowed, and any reconstruction must not enlarge existing buildings while also following flood-proofing rules. 

In that zone, no structures may be used for human habitation. So now, homes on the east side of Union Street in Bedford, for example, become legal non-conforming structures. People don't have to leave their homes in these areas, but no new residential development is allowed.

Regan said the dramatic July 2023 flooding, when homes on Union Street were badly damaged, shows the new maps are "very, very accurate." No parts of Union Street fall within the floodplain maps from the 1980s.

Within the 1-in-100 zone, also called the flood fringe overlay, existing uses like residential development can be allowed if habitable floors are created above the required flood elevation, and the structure can withstand floods and allow water to flow through. 

However, places that are hard to evacuate like shared housing, hospitals or daycares would not be allowed.

The city sent letters to more than 900 residents whose properties were completely or partially found within the new maps, the report said, and public meetings were held last August about the changes.

Regan said the provincial and federal governments should work together to purchase all properties within the floodplain zones and turn them into parks to "protect the river, the environment and the public."

In 2023, Halifax did ask the province to buy out homeowners in flood-prone areas like Union Street in Bedford.

But on Tuesday, provincial spokesperson Patricia Jreige told CBC in an email that the federal Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangement, which they deliver, "does not have a mechanism to allow the purchase of flooded homes."

Jreige said a letter outlining this stance was sent to then mayor Mike Savage on Jan. 19, 2024. 

The province did pay out about $1.2 million from this federal fund to 26 applicants from Union Street in response to the July 2023 floods, she said.

The Emergency Management Department is taking part in federal-led discussions on possible mechanisms to develop a national flood insurance program, Jreige added.

There will be a public hearing at city hall at a later date before the rules are passed.

Council also received an update about the work that has been done, or is underway, for the 10 most flood-prone areas around the Halifax municipality. The Sackville River watershed is priority No. 1, and other areas include Shore Road in Eastern Passage and parts of the Bedford Highway.