GALVESTON — The city began mailing final letters this week informing owners whether their houses and commercial buildings had been deemed substantially damaged by Hurricane Ike.

About 5,000 letters will eventually be mailed.

The city is required by federal regulations to send the letters to complete the assessment process, although the planning department has issued damage maps for weeks showing the status of all property in the city.

As a community participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, the city has adopted locally enforced flood damage reduction regulations that contain standards for new, substantially damaged or substantially improved structures in 100-year floodplains.

After Hurricane Ike’s Sept. 13th landfall, crews conducted substantial damage assessments for residential structures in the floodplain, using a formula established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to determine whether a structure had damage that would cost more than 50 percent of its value to repair.

Substantially damaged properties must comply with the current floodplain management regulations when they are repaired, meaning most properties must be raised above the base flood elevation.

Property owners whose structures are substantially damaged can appeal the determination by providing a recent appraisal of the structure’s market value. A contractor’s estimate of repairs and improvements may also be submitted with the appraisal, provided the estimate is from a city registered contractor and is professionally generated.

To speak with the city’s Planning and Community Development Department, visit their offices at Galveston City Hall, 823 Rosenberg, or call 409-797-3660.