SECTION 9.28: TOWN OF TOMPKINS 9.28 TOWN OF TOMPKINS This section presents the jurisdictional annex for the Town of Tompkins. A.) HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN POINT OF CONTACT Primary Point of Contact Alternate Point of Contact Nancy Roberts; Bookkeeper to Supervisor Chris Kinney; Fire Chief P.O. Box 139, Trout Creek, New York 13847 P.O. Box 139, Trout Creek, New York 13847 Phone: (607) 865-7780 (607) 865-6207 [email protected] [email protected] B.) TOWN PROFILE The Town of Tompkins, located in the southwest portion of Delaware County, covers 104 square miles with a population of 1,2471. The Town has a total land area of 104.4 square miles, 98.1 square miles of land and 6.3 square miles of water2. The Town of Tompkins is bordered by the towns of Masonville, Deposit, Hancock, and Walton. Woodlands dominate most of the Town while residential uses are clustered in the town’s hamlets of Trout Creek, Apex, and Kelsey and spread out on large parcels along the various local and state roads. A substantial portion of the town’s land base is owned by New York State or New York City for watershed and drinking water protection purposes. The Cannonsville Reservoir, created to supply drinking water for New York City, and the Delaware River cover approximately 3,800 acres (almost 5%) of the town’s total landmass and bisect the municipality3. The landscape is characterized by steep slopes and hillsides, which directly influence drainage patterns, water availability, and erosion potential. The local topography has shaped the development of the town in regards to land use, development intensity, and recreation opportunities. The Town of Tompkins is partially within the Catskill/Delaware Watershed Area of the New York City Watershed. The Cannonsville Reservoir constructed between 1955 and 1964 is a major component of the watershed system. The reservoir is located in the geographic center of the town and effectively splits the municipality into northern and southern halves. The main water feature in the Town of Tompkins is the Cannonsville Reservoir. There are several creeks that discharge into the reservoir and river including Fish Brook, Loomis Brook, Trout Creek, Barbour Brook, Spencer Brook, Sands Creek, Al Fisher Brook, and Read Creek. Other water resources include Russell Lake, Hathaway Pond, Perkins Pond, Trask Pond, and Merrick Pond. Floodplains are low-lying areas associated with surface water features that become periodically inundated in times of heavy rain or snowmelt. They provide space for excess runoff in a drainage system and can serve as recharge areas for groundwater supplies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has mapped 1% annual chance floodplains, defined as areas that have a 1% chance of being completely inundated at any time, with an average occurrence of once every one hundred years. In Tompkins, 1% annual chance floodplains are located along the Cannonsville Reservoir and Trout Creek where much of the town’s prime farmland soils are located3. Wetlands play an important role in regulating and purifying groundwater supplies and surface waters. They slow floodwaters and often act as natural retention basins. Wetlands also provide valuable wildlife habitats, open space, and combine with stream channels and ponds to form natural green space corridors 1 U.S. Census, 2010 2 U.S. Census, 2010 3 Town of Tompkins Comprehensive Plan, 2004 DMA 2000 Hazard Mitigation Plan Update – Delaware County, New York SECTION 9.28: TOWN OF TOMPKINS through the town. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation-regulated wetlands cover approximately 270 acres of the Town of Tompkins4. Hazard Vulnerabilities in the Town The following section discusses vulnerabilities from high-ranked hazards within the Town of Tompkins. Complete profiles of all hazards of concern are included in Section 5 of this Plan. Potential losses from Flood and Severe Storm were modeled using FEMA’s Hazards United States-Multi-Hazard (HAZUS- MH) software. HAZUS-MH uses Geographic Information Systems technology to estimate physical, economic, and social impacts of disasters5. For details regarding the methodology used for the vulnerability assessment, the Town’s vulnerability to each of the hazards assessed and for further explanation of the tables included below, please refer to the appropriate hazard profiles in Section 5.4 of this Plan. For details regarding specific disaster events that have impacted the Town, please see Section C of this document, “Documented Losses to Natural Hazard Events Specific to the Community". Flood Flood-prone areas: Of the Town’s total land area, a total of 9.2 square miles are located within the FEMA-defined 1% annual chance (100-year) and 0.2% annual chance (500-year) flood boundaries. It is important to note that not all flood hazard areas within Delaware County are identified in the Delaware County Flood Insurance Study (FIS) or on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). Identified flood hazard areas also vary in the level of accuracy with which they have been delineated. Consequently, all development and infrastructure on floodplains within the Town of Tompkins are considered vulnerable to the flood hazard, regardless of inclusion in the FIS/FIRM. The FIS did not identify flood problem areas for the Town of Tompkins6. In general, an “approximate” study determines the horizontal extent of the flood hazard only, based on the best available data. Flood hazard areas studied by approximate methods are shown as “A” zones on the Delaware County FIRM. A “detailed” study is more accurate than an approximate study and provides additional information about the flood hazard, such as water surface elevation during a flood of a given magnitude. Flood hazard areas studied by detailed methods are shown as “AE” zones on the Delaware County FIRM7. The FIS covers the geographic area of Delaware County. The areas studied by detailed methods were selected with priority given to all known flood hazard areas and areas of projected development and proposed construction. In the Town of Tompkins, the West Branch of the Delaware River was studied by detailed methods. Trout Creek was studied by approximate methods. Bullock Brook, Dryden Brook, Chase Brook, Carcass Brook, East Brook, Rich Creek, Sands Creek, Cadosia Creek, Johnny Brook, Dry Brook, Barbour Brook, and Chamberlain Brook were not studied8. 4 Town of Tompkins Comprehensive Plan, 2004 5 http://www.fema.gov/hazus 6 Flood Insurance Study for Delaware County (FEMA, 2012) 7 For more information on FEMA Flood Insurance Studies and Flood Insurance Rate Maps, please see Section 5.4.3 8 Delaware County DFIRM (FEMA, 2012) DMA 2000 Hazard Mitigation Plan Update – Delaware County, New York SECTION 9.28: TOWN OF TOMPKINS Floodplain population and the National Flood Insurance Program The Town of Tompkins has 98 properties that intersect with a FEMA-defined flood zone9. It is estimated that in the Town of Tompkins, a total of 20 residents live within the 1% annual chance (100-year) or the 0.2% annual chance (500-year) floodplain10. As of January 2012 FEMA reports 7 flood insurance policies existing in the Town of Tompkins under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). There were no Repetitive Loss11 properties in the Town of Tompkins at that time12. HAZUS-MH results HAZUS-MH estimates that for a 1% annual chance event, 13 people may be displaced and 0 people may seek short-term sheltering, representing 1.2% of the Town’s population. For the 0.2% annual chance event, it is estimated that 22 people may be displaced, representing 2.0% of the Town’s population. It is estimated that there would not be anyone seeking short-term sheltering. As summarized in Table 9.28-2 below, there is $3,348,547 of total assessed property (structure and land) exposed to the 1% annual chance flood in the Town of Tompkins. For the 0.2% annual chance event, it is estimated that there is also $3,348,547 of total assessed property exposed in the Town. Table 9.28-1. Estimated Assessed Value (Building and Land) Located in the 100- and 0.2% Annual Chance MRP Flood Boundaries 1% Annual Chance 0.2% Annual Chance Land AV Building AV Total AV Land AV Building AV Total AV $3,263,647 $84,900 $3,348,547 $3,263,647 $84,900 $3,348,547 Source: Real Property Data (July 2011) provided by Delaware County Note: AV = Assessed Value HAZUS-MH calculates the estimated potential damage to the general building stock inventory associated with the 1% annual chance and 0.2% annual chance flood events. HAZUS-MH estimates approximately $261,000 and approximately $395,000 of potential general building stock loss as a result of the 100- and 0.2% annual chance MRP events. Table 9.28-3 summarizes the potential loss estimates by occupancy class. Table 9.28-2. Estimated Potential General Building Stock Loss (Structure and Contents) by the 1% Annual Chance and 0.2% Annual Chance MRP Flood Events Percentage of Total Buildings Total Building (All Occupancies) Value Residential Buildings Commercial Buildings Industrial Buildings 0.2% 1% 0.2% 0.2% 1% 0.2% 1% 0.2% 1% Annual Annual Annual Annual 1% Annual Annual Annual Annual Annual Annual Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance $261,000 $395,000 0.2 0.3 $239,000 $381,000 $5,000 $10,000 $15,000 $18,000 Agriculture Buildings Religious Buildings Government Buildings Education Buildings 1% Annual 0.2% Annual 1% Annual 0.2% Annual 1% Annual 0.2% Annual 1% Annual 0.2% Annual Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance Chance $15,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $1,000 $1,000 Source: HAZUS-MH 2.0 9 Delaware County DFIRM (FEMA, 2012); Town of Tompkins Tax Parcels (Delaware County Real Property, 2011) 10 Please see Section 5.4.3 for a full description of the methods used to determine exposure to the flood hazard 11Repetitive Loss properties have received two flood insurance payouts of over $1000 within a ten-year period 12 FEMA, 2012 DMA 2000 Hazard Mitigation Plan Update – Delaware County, New York SECTION 9.28: TOWN OF TOMPKINS In the Town of Tompkins, the Ice Engineering Research Group reports historic ice jams along Trout Creek13.