Oakland County residents have until Tuesday, Aug. 11, to tell regional planners how flooding has affected their homes and neighborhoods.

The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments is collecting responses through an online survey as it builds a Flooding and Resilience Plan for the seven-county region. The plan will guide future spending on flood-prevention projects, meaning input from Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Bloomfield Township residents could shape which local investments get regional backing.

The deadline is tight.

Oakland County government pushed the survey Monday, Aug. 10, urging residents who have experienced flooding to share their stories and help guide future investments.

SEMCOG convened a Flooding and Resilience Task Force to oversee the plan after communities across Southeast Michigan saw more frequent and intense storms in recent years, according to WHMI. Officials told the station they had received a good response across parts of the region but were hoping for more representation from some counties.

SEMCOG officials told WHMI that community input is vital to ensuring the plan reflects the needs and values of the entire region.

Local flooding on the radar

Birmingham's stormwater system has drawn attention before. The city commission approved tighter stormwater discharge standards in May 2024, adopting rules set by the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner and reducing the allowable runoff rate for new development.

Oakland County has also invested in prevention. The county's RainSmart Rebates pilot program, completed in January 2026, helped residents install rain gardens, rain barrels and native trees expected to keep 1.4 million gallons of stormwater out of the sewer system each year, Fox 2 reported.

How to participate

The survey is at surveymonkey.com/r/KQHY5XD and closes Tuesday, Aug. 11. SEMCOG has not announced a public release date for the finished plan or a timeline for public hearings.