IAFSM’s traditional awards honor the efforts of one person over a career, or an agency over an extended period of time and many projects. The 2016 award winners are:
Outstanding Service Award
Loren Wobig
Awarded to an IAFSM officer, a Federal, State, or Local Official, or a consultant who has gone above and beyond normal expectations and duties to promote or encourage IAFSM goals. His long time dedication to the organization and the Flood Risk Symposium/Urban Flooding issues have made Loren a deserving recipient of this award.
Floodplain Manager of the Year Award
Thom Webster, City of Watseka
Watseka experienced severe flooding from the both the July and December 2015 floods. Hundreds of homes were impacted and several were in need of being determined if they were damaged above the 50% of their value. Thom
had never done a substantial damage determination before the July event, but now has completed several determinations and over 20 homes have now been elevated as a result. Thom has also begun to help other communities around Watseka to use FEMA’s determination software with great success.
Stormwater Management Award
City of Rockford
The City’s Stormwater Management Plan runs the gambit in regards to regulating what falls from the sky and what is discharged into their watershed system. This ordinance also complies with their NPDES Phase 1 permit.
Journalism or Public Outreach Award
WUIS, NPR Illinois
WUIS worked with several IAFSM members to bring public attention to the Urban Flooding Awareness Act. Their news story on Urban Flooding in Illinois can be listened to at: http://wuis.org/post/urban-flooding-big-problem-illinois
Mitigation Award
Paul Miller, DeKalb County
As Planning, Zoning and Building Director, Paul worked toward passing an “All Hazards Mitigation Plan” which has enabled DeKalb and the comminutes within to obtain hazard mitigation funding. This funding has been put toward demolition of many (repetitive) flood prone structures.