City of Prior Lake, MN
City of Prior Lake, MN

Open House to Discuss New 100-year Floodplain Elevation

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently established a new 100-year floodplain elevation for Prior Lake. The City will host an open house on May 17, 6 PM at Prior Lake City Hall, 4646 Dakota St. SE. to discuss how this may affect residents.  Staff will provide additional information through the City website in advance of the open house. Please contact Pete Young, Water Resources Engineer, for more information at 952-447-9831 or pyoung@cityofpriorlake.com.

The City of Prior Lake and the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District (PLSLWD), in collaboration with Spring Lake Township, completed a Flood Study in 2016. One of the significant components of the Flood Study is a watershed flood model that accurately characterizes the nature of flooding for the areas draining to Prior Lake. The previous flood model was developed in the 1970s and updated in 1997. FEMA used these old flood models to set the 100-year floodplain elevation for Prior Lake at 908.9, where it remains to this day. The 2016 Flood Study found that the 100-year flood elevation for Prior Lake should be 906.9. The difference of 2 feet is primarily due to the presence of the Prior Lake Outlet Channel (PLOC); Prior Lake was previously a landlocked lake having no natural outlet. The 1997 FEMA update did not consider the presence of the PLOC. The peak of the 2014 Prior Lake flood was 906.17. Read More

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