LONGWOOD, Fla. — In 2023, over 1,500 communities across the U.S. participated in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) community rating system.
The main incentive — reducing the cost of flood insurance.
Longwood did not participate, which meant their residents were unable to get a discount.
The city is now not only working to rectify that, but also working on three different flood mitigation projects.
Hurricanes Ian and Nicole were a real eye opener for Central Florida when it came to flood waters.
Even after Milton, parts of Central Florida saw severe flooding once again.
City of Longwood public works engineer Eric Nagowski says addressing the future impacts of storm and flood waters in Longwood is not a top priority, but instead “the main topic of discussion.”
And these discussions are not just for now, but to avoid problems later.
“We’re actually looking at rainfalls not just now, but predicting rainfalls out every decade,” Nagowski said. “The view is in 2030, 2040, and 2050, these rainfalls are going to increase. We have to look at and how we are going to respond to them.”
He is not just working on getting Longwood rated in FEMA’s community rating system.
“With this program we want to help our residents, one with the cost, because the more that we do the more that they save,” Nagowski said. “Two, it gives the city a measuring method as to how much more we can do.”
The first flood mitigation project is in a residential area near Lake Jane that was overwhelmed by Ian.
“The intensity overwhelmed this, and the water came over the edges and started eroding it, which allowed more water to erode farther,” Nagowski said while overlooking the broken storm drain. "Eventually the structure failed and you are looking at what it is now.”
It’s a concrete storm drain essentially detached from the system.
Everything now needs to be removed, a curb inlet is going in, and an updated system more resistant to flood waters is going in as well.
This project, which began in March, received funding from FEMA to do, and will be done in a couple of months.
The total system is thousands of linear feet, and it’s not always underground — part of it are swales. The system is a series of swales and pipes that convey the water to the outfall into Lake Jane.
Another project Longwood is preparing for is over at the Raven Outfall. The outfall is a five-foot diameter pipe. It was completely full, with water coming out of it due to Ian. The flood waters also eroded a channel all the way back toward Soldiers Creek.
Walls completely eroded and undermined. The system is responsible for roughly a fifth of the city’s stormwater.
“This area here is actually going to be moved out 10 feet, away from the houses, away from the power line and then sheet piles will go in. And the sheet pile is a much more robust system,” Nagowski says.
Since erosion took place here, the National Resources Conservation Service is helping to fund this project. It was another casualty caused by Ian.
“At the time when this was designed and based on the flows we had it, was more than adequate,” Nagowski said. “Ian really changed the way we look at stormwater.”
The other project the city is working to have complete by this time next year is in their business park area off Bennett Drive, an area with poor drainage. Funding help for this is coming from the Economic Development Administration.
The goal is to construct a pipe system so that the city can help convey that water away from business properties to a nearby storm pond. Essentially, the city is putting in a new storm water system.
In total, the city is receiving nearly $1.2 million in grants from the three different agencies to get these projects done. The city is investing about another half a million.
Not only will these projects help with the flood and storm waters in the city when complete, but they will also help Longwood residents earn a discount on flood insurance. Nagowski, who is constantly working on the CRS application, is hopeful to have it completed by the fall so residents could see discounts in 2026 for flood insurance.