HOME BUILDER’S GUIDE TO COAS TAL CONSTRUCTION
1.5: V ZONE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION CERTIFICATION
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HOME BUILDER’S GUIDE TO COASTAL CONSTRUCTION Technical Fact Sheet No. 1.5
GENERAL
1
12/10
V Zone Design and
Construction Certication
Purpose: To explain the certification requirements
for structural design and methods of construction
in V Zones.
Structural Design and Methods of
Construction Certification
As part of the agreement for making ood insurance
available in a community, the National Flood Insurance
Program (NFIP) requires the community to adopt a
oodplain management ordinance that species min-
imum design and construction requirements. Those
requirements include a certification of the structural
design and the proposed methods of construction
(a similar documentation requirement appears in the
2009 IRC, Section R322.3.6). It is recommended that
the design professional use ASCE 24 and ASCE 7 as
appropriate engineering standards.
Specically, NFIP regulations and local oodplain
management ordinances require that:
1. A registered professional engineer or architect
shall develop or review the structural design,
specifications, and plans for the construction.
2. A registered professional engineer or architect
shall certify that the design and methods of
construction to be used are in accordance with
accepted standards of practice in meeting these
criteria:
n
The bottom of the lowest horizontal structur-
al member of the lowest floor (excluding the pil-
ings or columns) is elevated to, or above, the
Base Flood Elevation (BFE).
n
The pile or column foundation and structure at-
tached thereto is anchored to resist flotation, col-
lapse, and lateral movement due to the effects
of wind and water loads acting simultaneously
on all building components. ASCE 7-10, Minimum
Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures,
provides guidelines on different load combina-
tions, which include ood and wind loads.
Completing the V Zone Design Certificate
There is no single V Zone certicate used on a na-
tionwide basis. Instead, local communities and/or
states have developed their own certication pro-
cedures and documents. Registered engineers and
architects involved in V Zone construction projects
should check with the authority having jurisdiction
regarding the exact nature and timing of required
certifications.
Page 2 shows a sample certication form. It is intend-
ed to show one way that a jurisdiction may require
that the certication and supporting information be
provided. In this example, the certication statement
can address both design and proposed methods of
construction and breakaway wall design.
Other Certifications Required in V Zone
n
Breakaway Wall Design, by a registered profes-
sional engineer or architect (see Fact Sheet
No. 8.1, Enclosures and Breakaway Walls)
n
“As Built” Lowest Floor Elevation, by a sur-
veyor, engineer, or architect (see Fact Sheet
No. 1.4, Lowest Floor Elevation)
The V Zone Design certification should take into consideration the NFIP Free-of-Obstruction require-
ment for V Zones: the space below the lowest oor must be free of obstructions (e.g., building element,
equipment, or other xed objects that can transfer ood loads to the foundation, or that can cause ood-
waters or waves to be deected into the building), or must be constructed with non-supporting breakaway
walls, open lattice, or insect screening. (See NFIP Technical Bulletin 5 and Fact Sheet No. 8.1, Enclosures
and Breakaway Walls.)
Required Certifications in V Zones
Designed and
constructed to
resist floatation,
collapse, and
lateral
movement
Lowest floor
elevation
Breakaway wall
