Morgan, Scott Counties to Discuss Hazard Mitigation Plan Feb. 17 in Jacksonville

Morgan and Scott counties will present draft updates to their multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan at a public meeting scheduled for Feb. 17 at 2:00 p.m. at the Jacksonville Municipal Building, 200 W. Douglas Avenue. The meeting is billed as the next session of public forums this spring intended to let local officials and residents review proposed projects designed to reduce damages from natural hazards and to document the region’s hazard history.

AEG LLC is serving as the planning consultant for the update. The consultant and county emergency management officials have been meeting with local agencies since mid-December to compile project lists and supporting documentation. Phil McCarty, director of the Jacksonville-Morgan County Office of Emergency Management, said the update has a clear funding purpose: “Obtaining FEMA’s approval of these updated Plans will make all of the participants eligible to receive federal grant money for mitigation projects and activities.” McCarty also stressed that the process aims to be accessible: “We want to make sure that anybody who is interested has an opportunity to review and comment on these draft Plan updates.”

County hazard mitigation plans are required and remain valid for five years. A FEMA-approved plan not only opens eligibility for federal mitigation grants but also consolidates historical hazard records and project need into a single, citable document. Ken Runkle of AEG pointed to the value of documented incidents during grant applications: “If you're trying to make the case that you need a lightning diversion system - showing that you've had buildings struck by lightning in your communities makes good evidence for that.”

Public participation is built into the schedule. Officials say there will be additional spring forums and that each public forum will be followed by a two-week public comment period to accommodate residents who cannot attend in person. Past planning cycles for Morgan County and the joint Morgan-Scott plan show recurring committee work and community outreach. The Morgan County EMA held multiple public meetings during the 2010 plan revision, including a March 12, 2010 meeting at the Morgan County EMA EOC, 302 Lee Street in Decatur, and a May 7, 2010 meeting attended by local agencies and neighboring county representatives. The 2014 Morgan & Scott multi-jurisdictional plan spelled out a mission to reduce hazards’ negative impacts on citizens, infrastructure, private property and critical facilities, and recorded five planning committee meetings between November 2012 and February 2014.

Examples from regional planning practice underscore multiple outreach channels and tools commonly used in updates, including citizen questionnaires, FAQ handouts, public forum materials and posting draft plans for review. For Morgan and Scott counties, the immediate path is clear: attend the Feb. 17 meeting or submit comments during the subsequent two-week window so local jurisdictions can finish the draft, seek adoption, and position projects for FEMA review and grant consideration. Photo credit: Bridgette Fox, Jacksonville Journal-Courier.