Brisbane City Council has announced an expansion of its Flood Resilient Homes Pilot Program to more than 2,000 local businesses.
Deputy Mayor, Krista Adams said Council was determined to help business owners improve the flood resilience of their premises in the same way residents were assisted.
“Brisbane is the most small-business friendly city in Australia and between the pandemic and flood, many have been through tough times recently,” she said.
“Brisbane is built on a floodplain so we can’t prevent flooding, but we can be better prepared.”
Cr Adams said the expansion of the program to eligible commercial properties would not only prepare for severe weather events but also better respond to and recover from flooding events.
“This month Council will contact more than 2000 businesses that experienced flooding through their business during the devastating February floods and invite them to participate in the new program,” she said.
Cr Adams said the Flood Resilient Suburbs – Business Resilience Program will offer businesses physical assessments or flood continuity planning.
“For our business owners we will now offer them two new free services to help them bounce back from any future events and keep our economy strong,” she said.
“Similar to the home program, businesses can now register for a free assessment delivered by flood-resilience experts, providing businesses with a tailored assessment of any physical changes or upgrades they can make to improve the resilience of their property.
“Alternatively, businesses can also register for a free Business Flood Continuity Plan to limit disruption to their regular business operations and have a plan in place to help alleviate financial stress.
“Brisbane is a great place to do business, and this new program will arm our local businesses with the tools they need to be more resilient and thrive.”
Cr Adams said the Flood Resilient Homes Program would also be expanded to apartments.
“In flood events, apartment buildings can experience flooding in basement areas which can cause residents in these complexes to be isolated or experience damage to property and building service outages, often for extended periods of time,” she said.
“Any apartment complexes which meet the flood risk criteria will now be able to access a free Building Resilience Assessment to learn more about their building’s flood risks and identify design, engineering and construction options to improve flood resilience.”
The Flood Resilient Suburbs – Apartments Program is currently focusing on apartment complexes with basements that are in areas with a 50% annual chance of overland or creek flooding or a one per cent annual chance of river flooding.
Council says the initial Flood Resilient Homes Pilot Program, launched in 2018, has seen 91% of flood-affected participants provide positive feedback on the improved resilience of their property.
The two new programs will be delivered in partnership with Brisbane Sustainability Agency and Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
