The communities profiled here all reached a point at which they decided it was futile to keep battling nature and losing. All former flood communities, they instead opted for a sustainable future, relocating their communities off the floodplain. And during reconstruction, they attempted to make their towns better than they were before by striving to incorporate principles of resource and energy efficiency. Sometimes these principles stuck and actually became town ordinances. Other times, they were lost in the rush to get the new town built. But increasingly, sustainable development is on the agenda. Someday it’ll be standard practice. 

Community Relocation and Vulnerability Reduction--Kinston, North Carolina
Illustrates a floodplain city where 50 and 100 year flood levels have affected and threaten to revisit. The "Call Kinston Home" project works towards economic and social viability through relocation of the community and vulnerability reduction of the last 150 sites in Kinston still located within the floodplain.

Community Relocation Planning and Execution -- New Pattonsburg, Missouri 
Discusses the town's relocation, starting in the fall of 1994, with the assembly of a team of the nation's best practicing experts in sustainable development.  The team, with support from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources Division of  Energy, worked closely with Pattonsburg residents throughout the fall to develop a "master plan" for New Pattonsburg. 

Rebuilding Outside of the Floodplain -- Valmeyer, Illinois 
Discusses the relocation of Valmeyer, the first community to benefit from the assistance of the Working Group on Sustainable Development. 

Flood Community Relocation -- Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin 
Profiles the pioneer of sustainable redevelopment for flood communities, a picturesque village of about 600 on the banks of the Kickapoo River in southwest Wisconsin.  Nearly 20 years ago, after decades of repeated flooding, residents decided to build a new town center on higher ground.  The new soldiers Grove was officially completed in 1983. 

Relocating Outside of the Floodplain -- Rhineland, Missouri 
Offers a unique relocation story because most of the relocation consisted not of building new homes but of picking up the old ones and moving them to the new site.  Thirty-two of the town's 52 homes were relocated, and during the process, many were brought up to building code standards with foundation, plumbing, and wiring improvements.  Weatherization work was also completed on qualifying homes. 

Megalinks to success stories on other sites 
Provides links to success stories on a wide variety of sustainable development topics, including Disaster Planning.

Last updated: May 1, 2002

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