February 15, 2006

NACA Members Respond to Gulf Coast Hurricanes

   REBUILDING AND RECOVERY

FEMA links reconstruction funds to advisory flood elevations
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced this week that FEMA-funded mitigation and public infrastructure recovery projects—including those in heavily impacted areas of the Gulf Coast region—are to be tied to new, higher floodplain elevations. Called Advisory Base Flood Elevations (ABFE's), the height at which there is a one percent or greater chance of flooding in a given year, the rebuilding standards will be required for all FEMA-funded mitigation and public infrastructure grant-based recovery program projects. The FEMA grants tied to ABFE's are those for the repair and rebuilding of public infrastructure projects such as schools, public safety stations, libraries, and other shared community infrastructure. Individual homeowners, while encouraged to build back to ABFE's, are not impacted by this FEMA policy unless using a FEMA mitigation grant in the rebuilding process. Contact Robert L. Sullivan or John Sullivan.

Rebuilding plans concern Gulf Coast residents
According to a news report on National Public Radio, some Gulf Coast residents are concerned that plans for casinos and condos, which residents had opposed prior to Hurricane Katrina, could now have clearance to be built. Many residents say they want the area to be restored as it was, with small homes and neighborhoods that retain a small-town feel. more

Do "fortified" buildings deserve lower insurance premiums?
Arkansas based newspaper, The Morning News, reports that builders are hoping insurers will offer lower rates for owners of "fortified" homes designed to withstand Mother Nature's fury, helping negate the increased costs to build such reinforced structures. Homes built using concrete homebuilding systems can easily qualify as a "fortified" home. more

Louisiana receives $863 million for repairs to hurricane-damaged roads

Louisiana is receiving $863 million in additional federal transportation funds to repair hurricane-damaged roads, including $629 million for a new I-10 bridge in New Orleans, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta recently announced. The new funds also cover repairs to the existing I-10 Twin Span bridge between New Orleans and Slidell, which was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina but reopened ahead of schedule to four lanes of traffic in early January. In addition, some of the money will pay the cost of clearing debris from highways immediately after the storm. more

   EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING

New Orleans' devastation offers vast educational opportunities
An article in The Washington Post indicates the flooding in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina offers one big benefit¾the chance for a real-world educational laboratory offering crucial lessons for a broad spectrum of academic fields, ranging from architecture and sociology to the biologic study of mold and the mechanics of engineering pumps and levees. The city's Tulane University has rewritten the entire curriculum for its school of architecture, and school officials say they are determined to take advantage of the unique education experiences that can be offered by the city as it recovers from devastation.  

Gulf Coast hurricane workshops scheduled

Several concrete industry associations have joined together to offer three 1-day seminars titled

Storm-Resistant Concrete Building Systems in the Gulf Coast region:

• April 11 – Hattiesburg, Mississippi (MCIA)

• April 12 – Baton Rouge, Louisiana (CAAL)

• April 13 – Mobile, Alabama (ACIA)

Topics covered during the seminar include hurricane forces and hurricane resistant construction, building code requirements for hurricane zones, concrete masonry construction, precast concrete systems, tilt-up concrete construction, removable forming systems, Insulating concrete forms. Builders, architects, engineers, contractors, building officials, and product suppliers are invited to attend. The general public is also welcome. Attendees will receive 7 Professional Development Hours. The registration fee is only $49 and includes continental breakfast and lunch. Visit www.nrmca.org/seminars to register for a seminar or contact Jennifer Leonard at (240) 485-1156.

   CODES AND RESEARCH

Code adoptions soar, ICC opens Louisiana field office
The International Code Council (ICC) reports that thirty jurisdictions in fifteen states adopted the International Codes (I-Codes) in January alone, compared to the 40 jurisdictions that began using the I-Codes from May through early September of 2005. In support of recent I-Code adoptions in Louisiana and impending adoption in Mississippi, ICC opened a field office in Louisiana and hired Mark Roberts as ICC Regional Manager of State Government Relations for Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. more

   GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

Mississippi Senate passes building code bill, endorsed by Governor

The Mississippi Senate passed a bill on February 10 that would adopt both the International Building Code and the International Residential Code statewide. Senate Bill SB2807 also allows local jurisdictions to adopt amendments to the building code provided they are more stringent than the minimum standard. The bill has been referred to the Mississippi House. Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour recently wrote a letter to the Chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee, Dean Kirby, indicating he would sign the bill into law if it was passed in its current form. Read the governor's letter. Read SB 2807.