911 Addressing

September 03 - 911 update

The County E-911 Board informs residents to begin using new addresses immediately . The Board has assigned all county residences new addresses necessary to support the Emergency 911 telephone system and improve the response time to emergencies.

The Post Office suggests:

- residents begin notifying all correspondents on new addresses. The Post Office will continue to deliver mail to your old address for a period of one year.

- new house numbers must be shown on rural mailboxes, they further suggest placing numbers on both sides of the mail box.

- Remember to notify:

• Driver's License Dept;
• Voter Registration
• Car/Road Registrations
• Bank Accounts
• Insurance Policies (home, auto, personal)
• Christmas Card/Personal Address Lists

Call the Address Conversion Hotline for any questions - 304-724-6759

3/18/03 - The Jefferson County E9-1-1 Addressing Project

On 3/18/03 the Director of Emergency Communictions presented the Jefferson County E9-1-1 Ordinance to the Shepherdstown Rotary group, his PowerPoint presentation follows this note.

We will be getting brown w/white lettered street signs to represent private development. Public roads will get green signs. All will be mounted on 2x2 aluminum posts. Our streets are managed individually hence the separate numbering schemes between Heritage Drive and Hidden Valley Circle.

Notification packets will be distributed in the middle of April so new addresses will most likely be effective by June.

The Jefferson County E9-1-1 Addressing Project

Presented by:

Jeffrey A. Polczynski

Director of Communications

Some of the most frequently asked questions are:

• What is Addressing/Re-Addressing?
• What’s the need for addressing?
• How does the address system work?
• When will I be notified of my address?
• When do I begin using my new address?

What is Addressing Re-Addressing?

• Method of providing each structure a unique form of identification utilizing a formulated uniform approach which enables public safety responders the ability to quickly and easily locate a particular structure in the case of an emergency.

Benefits to Good Addressing:

• Provides a quicker means to locate a residence/business for emergency service responders and the general public alike
• Provides a methodological approach to future development
• Provides a comprehensive means to better formulate GIS mapping
• Lessens the likelihood of litigation.

Jefferson County Addressing:

Prior to 1997

Addresses provided by

U.S. Postal Service

Utility Companies

Developers

Engineers & Architects

Landowners

Homeowner Associations

Street Names

No formal methodology to addressing

Duplications existed throughout County

Jefferson County Addressing:

Prior to 2001

Addresses provided by

Addressing Office for new structures

Some existing structures were re-addressed however the wrong standards were utilized

Street Names

Duplication continued to exist in the unincorporated areas of Jefferson County

Typical addresses used throughout County are:

Rural Route / Box System (non-physical address)

Lot number from the PLAT

A number selected by USPS

P.O. Box (non-physical address)

Street Names

Went through the Planning, Zoning & Engineering Dept. however a master list not developed until very recently.

In 2001 – The County hired a professional addressing firm – MSAG Data Consultants, Inc.

MSAG responsible for:

Mapping and addressing the County

Aerial photography taken – digital planimetric maps created

Identifying addressable structures

Drove every road and driveway delivering address questionnaire packets

Developing the address database (old address versus new address)

Definitions

Addressable Structure - An addressable structure is anyplace that you live, work, worship, or play – and - cellular telephone towers

Road Naming - A road must have a name if there are three or more addressable structures on the road.

Street Naming:

County established rules for the naming/renaming of roads.

If a duplicate road name existed, the road having the name first maintained the name.

All roads without a name were named

Residences/Businesses along road in question were sent survey card.

Required to suggest road name, submit name by specific date.

If road name not objected, adopted as part of Official County Road Name Index.

Addressing Methodology:

General Rules:

Rule 1: Avoid Duplication

Rule 2: Avoid Confusion

Rule 3: Avoid Multiple Thoroughfare Names

Rule 4: Avoid Broken Streets Sharing the Same Name

Rule 5: All Private Streets are to Differentiate from Public Streets

Rules and Methodology:

Written Guide which provides general “Rules” to be adhered to with little or no deviation.

E9-1-1 Addressing Ordinance would provide this method.

Addressing Ordinance

Jefferson County

Commission

Leslie D. Smith, County Administrator

P.O. Box 250, 124 E. Washington Street, Charles Town, WV 25414

Phone: 304/728-3284 - Fax: 304/725-7916

Jefferson County

West Virginia

E9-1-1 Addressing Ordinance

AN ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE ASSIGNMENT OF NAMES TO STREETS AND ROADWAYS AND IMPLEMENTATION AND MAINTENANCE OF THE POSTING OF STREET SIGNS AND BUILDING NUMBERS IN JEFFERSON COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA

Ordinance adopted by Jefferson County Commission effective July 1, 2002.

www.jeffersoncountywv.org/communication911.html

[click on Addressing Ordinance]

Requires the County to follow specific rules regarding road naming and numbering

Requires the citizens to post numbers on their structure and at the end of their driveway

Road naming completed and Official Road Name Index adopted by Jefferson County Commission on Feb 25, 2003.

Mapping completed by MSAG Data Consultants, Inc. – maintenance continues forever

Interface with U.S. Postal Service to provide the old address/new address database

How does the Address System Work?

Address assigned based upon distance along a given roadway

NENA II Standard of 5.28 feet

Every 5.28 feet, an addressed can be assigned

Addressed to the middle of structure, or to driveway (whichever is more appropriate)

From West to East – From South to North

Odd on the left, Even on the right

Allows for growth along a roadway – a new structure built can be properly calculated or an address

For dead end roads, numbering will start at the beginning of the road, regardless of direction.

If the distance to your home from the starting point of the road is X, then your address = Y (distance ÷ 5.28 = address number)

Distance = Address #

52 feet 10

100 feet 18

528 feet (1/10 mile) 100

½ Mile (2,640 ft) 500

1 mile (5,280 ft) 1000

5 miles (26,400 ft) 5000

What’s Next?

Address Delivery and Notification

The County will be using MSAG Data Consultants, Inc. to hand deliver an address packet to every structure.

Starting in the north part of the County, working south

MSAG will be delivering packets which contain:

New Address

Yellow postal card for resident to provide old address/new address – to be given to carrier/local post office

Questionnaire obtaining telephone number, old address, name phone is billed to

Letter from County explaining addressing project

U.S. Postal Service Responsibilities

Deliver the mail

Convert their delivery route sheets from the old address to the new address

County providing approximately 80% of this database

Notify residents when to begin using their new address

When do I begin using my new address?

As soon as the U.S. Post Office completes conversion of your zip code

Post Office will notify to begin using address

Post Office will will only deliver mail to your old address for one year after the conversion

Road Signing

County replacing all signs in the County to conform to the Federal Highway Administration standards – this includes

private roadways, subdivisions, as well as state maintained roadways.

Standards used are FHWA MUTCD 2000 guidelines.

Questions & Answers

jpolczynski@jeffersoncountywv.org