Council approves interlocal agreement with San Antonio River Authority to accelerate FEMA floodplain reviews
August 08, 2025 | Fair Oaks Ranch, Bexar County, Texas
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Fair Oaks Ranch City Council on Aug. 7 approved an interlocal agreement (ILA) with the San Antonio River Authority to allow SARA to perform local technical reviews of FEMA floodplain revision packages for areas of the city in Kendall County.
Lee Muniz, manager of engineering services, told council SARA would review floodplain map revision packages that would otherwise be sent directly to FEMA for technical review. Muniz said the ILA requires no transfer of funds between the city and SARA because developers or property owners pay FEMA’s review fees; the city’s role remains to perform its local community approval steps before submittal.
Joe Fernandez, SARA’s LOMAR (Letter of Map Amendment/Revision) program administrator, said SARA already provides the service for Bexar County and that expanding the program to Kendall County would add a local repository of studies and shorten review times. "Our turnaround time period, FEMA has about 13 to 14 month time period to complete from start to finish our review. Our times are looking at about 3 to 4 months in itself,” Fernandez said, attributing faster reviews to SARA staff familiarity with local watersheds and stronger communication with submitters.
Muniz said Kendall County and the city of Boerne have already approved the same agreement; once the local partners are in place, future floodplain submissions in the city limits that fall in Kendall County will be routed to SARA for technical review before FEMA action.
Council members asked whether the ILA covers the entire city. Fernandez and Muniz said the agreement as approved covers the Kendall County portion of Fair Oaks Ranch; SARA representatives said expansion into Comal County is desired but would require additional approvals and FEMA discussion. Muniz and Fernandez emphasized that the ILA does not affect FEMA’s fee schedule or developer obligations; it is intended only to speed and improve the technical review process.
Council approved the resolution to enter into the interlocal agreement, and staff will proceed with coordination among Kendall County, Boerne and Fair Oaks Ranch so SARA can submit the program to FEMA for final authorization.
Lee Muniz, manager of engineering services, told council SARA would review floodplain map revision packages that would otherwise be sent directly to FEMA for technical review. Muniz said the ILA requires no transfer of funds between the city and SARA because developers or property owners pay FEMA’s review fees; the city’s role remains to perform its local community approval steps before submittal.
Joe Fernandez, SARA’s LOMAR (Letter of Map Amendment/Revision) program administrator, said SARA already provides the service for Bexar County and that expanding the program to Kendall County would add a local repository of studies and shorten review times. "Our turnaround time period, FEMA has about 13 to 14 month time period to complete from start to finish our review. Our times are looking at about 3 to 4 months in itself,” Fernandez said, attributing faster reviews to SARA staff familiarity with local watersheds and stronger communication with submitters.
Muniz said Kendall County and the city of Boerne have already approved the same agreement; once the local partners are in place, future floodplain submissions in the city limits that fall in Kendall County will be routed to SARA for technical review before FEMA action.
Council members asked whether the ILA covers the entire city. Fernandez and Muniz said the agreement as approved covers the Kendall County portion of Fair Oaks Ranch; SARA representatives said expansion into Comal County is desired but would require additional approvals and FEMA discussion. Muniz and Fernandez emphasized that the ILA does not affect FEMA’s fee schedule or developer obligations; it is intended only to speed and improve the technical review process.
Council approved the resolution to enter into the interlocal agreement, and staff will proceed with coordination among Kendall County, Boerne and Fair Oaks Ranch so SARA can submit the program to FEMA for final authorization.
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