Abstract

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Paper
GIS Challenges Exposed by FEMA Appeals Period
Track: Database Design, Automation, and Management
Author(s): Brandon Grimm, Jacob Spenn, Elle Anderson, John Grounds III

With the completion of the most technologically advanced flood insurance study in U.S. history, community officials, engineers, and the public were charged with reviewing the final product and producing GIS data in support of their appeals. A void was realized among those who did not have direct interaction with the project. Did GIS technology pass them by? The format of the 250 appeals varied significantly and posed great challenges for the integration of data into a seamless geodatabase. The data types ranged from hand-annotated notes to edited HEC-RAS models. The data was edited using functions in the ArcGIS environment, which allowed the geodatabase to be modified and seamlessly integrated back into the master dataset. The Appeals Period was completed in an unprecedented manner and the GIS processes will be used as a model for future FEMA map modernization efforts. The GIS highlights and pitfalls will be showcased.

Brandon Grimm
Grounds Anderson, LLC.
GIS
3801 Kirby Dr. Suite 340
Houston , TX 77098
US
Phone: 832-613-9800
E-mail: bgrimm@groundsanderson.com

Jacob Spenn
Harris County Flood Control District
Planning Department
9900 Northwest Freeway
Houston , TX 77092
US
Phone: 713-684-4071
E-mail: Jacob.spenn@hcfcd.org

Elle Anderson
Grounds Anderson, LLC.
3801 Kirby Dr. Suite 340
Houston , TX 77098
US
Phone: 832-613-9800
E-mail: eanderson@groundsanderson.com

John Grounds III
Grounds Anderson, LLC.
3801 Kirby Dr. Suite 340
Houston , TX 77098
US
Phone: 832-613-9800
E-mail: jgrounds@groundsanderson.com