Lavaca County starts rural development with a floodplain determination

Planning work outside a city? Start with Lavaca County's Floodplain Determination Application. File it before site work begins. The county uses it to check whether the land falls in a mapped flood hazard area. A FEMA map can preview the answer. It does not replace the county form.

Development means more than building a house. It includes structures, manufactured homes, fill, grading, paving, digging, drilling, and stored equipment or materials. The form asks for the legal and physical property descriptions, a signature, and the fee. A project over two acres also needs an aerial map.

As checked July 29, 2026, the posted residential or commercial fee is $20. A mapped-hazard finding leads to more review. The residential and commercial instructions call for an elevation certificate. Work without a structure and oil-and-gas projects can use different records. A floodway adds more rules.

Open the form from the current Floodplain Management page. Call the administrator at 361-798-2301 before paying or hiring a surveyor. A finding outside the mapped area does not mean flood-free land. It also does not clear septic, subdivision, driveway, or other development rules.