Government : Public input sought for Hazard Mitigation Plan; four meetings scheduled

All residents of Benton County have the opportunity to provide input into the revision of Benton County’s Hazard Mitigation plan at the second meeting regarding revision of the plan. Meetings will be held at the following locations:

Tuesday, July 14 at the Norway City Hall, 108 East Railroad St., Norway

Wednesday, July 15, at the Shellsburg City Hall, 108 Main Street, SE, Shellsburg

Monday, July 20 at the Blairstown Community Center, 305 Locust St., NW,

Blairstown

Thursday, July 23, Garrison Emergency Services Building, 205 North Sycamore,

Garrison

All meetings begin at 7:00 pm.

These are open public meetings. All citizens and interested parties are invited to attend the meeting and provide comments relative to the plan. Developing a multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan usually requires up to 5 public meetings.

This meeting will have three purposes:

1) Review of progress with the Benton County MJHMP

2) Review of Hazard Profiles developed for the hazard and instructions for scoring the hazards by Benton County communities

3) Review of potential mitigation actions.

The first meetings regarding revision of the plan were held in January, 2016. Benton County’s Hazard Mitigation Plan was originally developed in 2011 by Consultant Steve Meyer. FEMA requires the plans to be updated every five years. The revised Benton County plan will be submitted to FEMA by February 1, 2016. The revision process began in January, 2015 with a series of meetings held around the county.

Participation in this meeting by every Benton County community is vital. Every community has its own particular hazards and mitigation needs. Without participation the situation and needs of each individual community will not be adequately represented in the plan.

A draft Hazard Profiles section of the 2016 Benton County MJHMP can be found at the website www.stevemeyerconsulting.com. Also at the website is a copy of the 2011 Benton County MJHMP.

For more information contact: Steve Meyer at Steve Meyer Consulting LLC, 319-477-5041.