St. Petersburg Flood Zones Guide

A St. Petersburg address's FEMA flood zone can be looked up on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center or in the city's Prepare, St. Pete map, and the city provides Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) determinations.

The Prepare, St. Pete interactive map layers the FEMA flood zones, the city Stormwater Floodplain, hurricane evacuation zones and active crane radii on one screen (City of St. Petersburg flooding page). The city points to the FEMA Flood Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov for Flood Insurance Rate Maps and parcel-specific flood zone information. The current St. Petersburg maps went into effect on August 24, 2021.

Questions go to Construction Services and Permitting at the Municipal Services Center, One Fourth Street North, 1st Floor, which is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 8 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, with the last customer taken half an hour before closing; email is [email protected] and flooding can be reported at 727-893-7231 (St. Petersburg flooding page). Pinellas County runs a separate Floodplain Management office at 22211 U.S. Highway 19 N. in Clearwater, whose Flood Information Services hotline, (727) 464-7700, answers questions about flood hazards and flood-prone areas (Pinellas County flood maps and zones). Last verified: October 15, 2026, on the City of St. Petersburg and Pinellas County websites.

On St. Petersburg's FEMA maps, any zone starting with A or V is a high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area, while Zone X marks moderate or minimal risk.

FEMA defines the Special Flood Hazard Area as land covered by the flood that has a 1-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year, labeled with A and V zone variants, and places the 0.2-percent-annual-chance (500-year) boundary between shaded and unshaded Zone X (FEMA flood zones). The St. Petersburg flooding page adds two local markers from the 2021 maps: the Coastal A Zone, which must meet V Zone building standards, and the Limit of Moderate Wave Action, drawn as a black line with triangle teeth pointing toward the water (City of St. Petersburg flooding page).

The city's own analysis puts the scale in context. Its 2023 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis states that about a third of St. Petersburg is flood prone and that most of its repeat-flooding subareas fall in the riskier AE Zone (St. Petersburg Repetitive Loss Area Analysis 2023). That report also notes the Coastal A zone was added along coastal areas when the August 24, 2021 maps took effect.

No: St. Petersburg uses three different maps, and a home can be low risk on one and high risk on another.

The City of St. Petersburg Stormwater Floodplain shows areas with a 1% or greater yearly chance of flooding from heavy rain, built from localized, granular modeling in the City's Stormwater Master Plan, and many areas inside it are not included in the FEMA floodplains (City of St. Petersburg flooding page). FEMA zones, by contrast, inform insurance and building requirements and are also used by the city to regulate flood hazard areas. Evacuation zones measure storm surge vulnerability and guide hurricane evacuation orders.

Pinellas County spells out the consequence: federal flood insurance requirements are based only on the FEMA FIRM, not on county flood maps, and a home may sit in a non-evacuation zone yet in a high-risk flood zone because of a nearby stream or pond (Pinellas County flood maps and zones). County evacuation zones run from A through E plus non-evacuation areas and come from National Hurricane Center surge modeling based on ground elevation. The St. Petersburg hurricane evacuation zones guide covers those zones in depth.

Every St. Petersburg utility customer pays a monthly stormwater fee, even if other services on the property have been discontinued. The city bills single-family homes by impervious surface area, from $12.67 a month for 1,600 square feet or less to $59.08 for 4,801 square feet or more, and the fee funds collection and a future drainage system meant to keep streets from flooding during heavy rains (City of St. Petersburg current utility rates).

Flood insurance is federally required for a St. Petersburg property in a Special Flood Hazard Area with a federally backed mortgage, and the city's 2023 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis reports Community Rating System Class 5, a 25% discount on NFIP premiums.

NFIP flood insurance is available for any property in St. Pete, whether or not it is in a flood zone (City of St. Petersburg flooding page). The city's 2023 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis states that St. Petersburg is a Class 5 community with a 25% discount on flood insurance premiums (RLAA 2023).

Unincorporated Pinellas County's discount rose to 40% as of April 1, 2024, after its rating improved to Class 2, for an estimated total savings of $10 million to residents and businesses (Pinellas County flood information). The county calls Class 2 the highest CRS rating a Florida community has ever achieved, publishes the full scale from 45% at Class 1 to 0% at Class 10, and reports that 22 of the 24 municipalities in Pinellas County took part in the CRS as of April 1, 2023 (Pinellas County Community Rating System). The county page directs owners outside unincorporated Pinellas County to their municipality or the NFIP Community Rating System website for their class. The city's 2023 report lists improving the City's CRS classification as a recommendation, and the city flooding page, checked October 15, 2026, does not state a CRS class (City of St. Petersburg flooding page), so the St. Petersburg class on this page is the one dated 2023.

Under the St. Petersburg 49% rule, a building in the Special Flood Hazard Area whose repairs or improvements reach 49% of its pre-damage market value must be brought into full compliance with current zoning, building and floodplain management regulations.

The St. Petersburg Floodplain Management Ordinance, Section 3.4, defines substantial damage as any combination of repair, reconstruction or improvement whose cumulative cost equals or exceeds 49% of the structure's pre-damaged market value (City of St. Petersburg 49% Rule page). Full compliance may mean elevating the structure, using flood-resistant materials and adding proper flood venting. The rule covers all repairs in the flood hazard area, even when the damage was not caused by flooding, and even when an owner does the work or uses donated materials.

The city estimates market value from the structure's tax assessment value set by the Pinellas County Property Appraiser, and an owner who disagrees can submit an independent appraisal by a state-licensed appraiser, completed within the last 12 months, of the structure in its pre-storm condition (St. Petersburg 49% Rule page). Cost of Compliance coverage in a flood insurance policy and local tax relief can offset the cost of elevating, and calculation questions go to [email protected]. New and substantially improved buildings must also sit two feet above base flood elevation, and some multi-family buildings of three or more units four feet, under a local amendment to the building code (RLAA 2023).

The stakes reach beyond one lot. The city says complying with permit and inspection rules in flood hazard areas will significantly reduce the risk of losing the City's discount with the National Flood Insurance Program and FEMA funding (City of St. Petersburg damage assessment page). Water intrusion and flood or storm damage affecting walls, fixtures, built-in cabinetry, windows, doors, roof, electrical, mechanical or plumbing requires a permit for repair or replacement; permit questions go to [email protected] or 727-893-7231 (flooding page).

St. Petersburg's 2023 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis maps 4 repetitive loss subareas where 969 buildings have been the subject of at least two flood insurance claims of $1,000 over a 10-year period.

Within those subareas, 145 structures have had four or more claims of at least $5,000, according to the city's 2023 Repetitive Loss Area Analysis; the Privacy Act of 1974 keeps the report from publishing detailed maps of each subarea (RLAA 2023). By subarea, the report counts 756 repetitive loss structures in the East, 147 in the North, 44 in the South and 22 in the West, and its FEMA Repetitive Loss List (2023) data shows 26,439 properties in a Special Flood Hazard Area; the report adds that the data likely understates the flooding problem. It recommends drainage improvements, backflow preventers at outfalls and a better CRS classification, and advises residents of the subareas to purchase and maintain flood insurance on the home and its contents.

Effective July 1, 2025, Chapter 2025-149, now section 316.88 of the Florida Statutes, bars driving at a speed that creates an excessive wake on flooded streets, and the city ran Flood Awareness Week beginning March 9, 2026 (City of St. Petersburg flooding page). The same page lists public notices of the city's pursuit of Flood Mitigation Assistance Program grant funds from June 2024 through May 28, 2025. Blocked storm drains and localized street flooding are reported through SeeClickFix, and the city urges owners to check flood insurance coverage during blue skies.