The requirements set forth within the provisions of these regulations
are intended to promote the general health, safety, welfare and convenience
of the inhabitants of the Town of Groton by reducing the difficulty
in responding to individual residences, commercial properties and
nonprofit locations in cases of police, fire, medical or other emergency
situations requiring immediate location determination and response;
by facilitating the delivery efforts of the United States Postal Service
through the creation of a naming and numbering system for all delivery
locations; by decreasing the potential for traffic accidents caused
by motorists searching for address locations; by allowing the use
of information technology to provide for the efficient administration
of Town government; by improving local census data gathering capabilities;
by improving the accuracy of important real property legal documents
requiring location information; and by assisting the planning efforts
of a growing community.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
CORNER LOT
A lot or parcel of land abutting upon two or more streets
at their intersection or upon two parts of the same street having
street side lines or tangents to side lines forming an interior angle
of less than 135º.
CUL-DE-SAC
A minor street having one end open for vehicle traffic and
the other end permanently closed by a turnaround for vehicles.
HAMMERHEAD LOT
A lot having at least 40 feet of frontage and five acres' area and meeting the requirements of the Code of Groton, Chapter
218, Zoning, § 218-23.1.
MULTIPLE-USE PROPERTIES
Multiple-use properties are those with more than one principal
use, either in separate buildings or the same building. Examples of
multiple-use properties are two separate, freestanding dwellings on
the same property; dwelling unit and business on the same lot; or
a building used for commercial and residential uses.
NUMBER INTERVAL METHOD
A method by which street numbers are assigned to properties
based on their location in relationship to twenty-foot-wide intervals
scaled along the center line of the properties' vehicular access,
intended to provide flexibility and consistency.
STREET CATEGORIES
A.
COLLECTORA street with anticipated traffic equivalent to that generated by 50 homes or more or which serves abutting land zoned for business or industry.
B.
DEAD ENDA street or street system which has only one means of ingress from or egress to a collector or minor street. The dead end category includes streets commonly called "cul-de-sacs."
C.
LANEA dead-end street or loop street which cannot serve as access to more than 12 dwelling units and cannot be extended.
D.
MINORA street which cannot qualify as a "lane" but which can be expected to handle less traffic than a collector street and which serves no abutting land zoned for business or industry.
E.
PAPERAny way or right-of-way shown on a plan or sketch but which has not been constructed.
G.
VEHICULAR ACCESSEmergency vehicle access to a building, as determined by the Fire Chief or Building Commissioner.
TOWNHOUSE
Type of dwelling unit normally having two, but sometimes
three, stories; usually connected to a similar structure by a common
wall, and commonly (particularly in planned unit developments) subject
to an arrangement under which owners share and own in common the surrounding
grounds.
The Town of Groton has a wide variety of street patterns, types
of land use and densities of development. Therefore, the roadway network
and development trends in each area must be carefully studied to determine
the most appropriate building numbers. At times this may require the
use of different methods to assign numbers. In order to provide a
basic framework for consistency in making these decisions, the following
numbering principles shall be used.
A. Application of numbering principles: It is unrealistic to think that
a numbering method can be described for every possible combination
of building type, building design, road type, building orientation
relative to the street, placement of external entrances, etc. Accordingly,
the Town Manager or his/her designee will generally apply these numbering
principles, using his/her reasonable discretion and judgment, when
assigning numbers. It is important that numbers be assigned consistently
to like or very similar situations. In this regard, when truly new
numbering situations present themselves, the Town Manager will collaborate
with the Fire Chief, the Building Commissioner, the E-9-1-1 Database
Liaison, and the Information Technology Manager and agree on a solution.
The agreed-on solution for the particular situation will be documented
and used each time a like or very similar situation presents itself
in the future. These documented situation-specific numbering solutions
may be consolidated and included in future revisions to these regulations.
B. Campuses: In recognition of their nonstandard roads, driveways, and
building layouts, campuses and campuslike properties shall adopt a
numbering scheme that is mutually agreeable to the campus owner and
to the Groton Fire Chief. In reaching this mutual agreement, both
parties will give the highest priority to facilitating the fastest
and most accurate response by both Town and mutual-aid emergency service
responders.
C. Road ownership category. These street numbering principles apply
regardless of the legal ownership category of the roadway upon which
vehicles traverse.
D. Number interval method:
(1) This method shall be used to assign numbers for residential and nonresidential
buildings.
(2) Numbers will be based on twenty-foot intervals along the center line
of the street.
E. Single street number with unit designation:
(1) As a general rule, buildings with multiple external entrances will
have each external entrance assigned a unit letter. When frontage
on the street makes this impossible or impractical, the building will
be assigned a street number using the twenty-foot-interval method.
(2) All units with external entrances will be assigned an alphabetic
unit designation starting, when facing the building from the vehicular
access, beginning with the lefthand corner and progressing from left
to right (in a counter-clockwise direction) as shown on the following
diagram:
(3) All units with internal entrances will be assigned an alphabetic
unit designation from left to right alternating along the inside of
the hallway as shown on the following diagram:
(4) All units with internal entrances in buildings with multiple floors
will be assigned a floor number followed by an alphabetic unit designation
from left to right alternating along the inside of the hallway. Units
accessed by a separate external entrance shall be assigned a floor
number followed by an alphabetic unit designation as shown on the
following diagram:
F. Numbers assigned to driveway or front entrance: Numbers shall be
assigned based on the location of the vehicular access to the building.
Consideration may be given by the Building Commissioner, for new buildings,
and by the Fire Chief, for existing buildings, to the assignment of
numbers based on where the building faces the road when there is a
demonstrated need for assigning the number in such a manner.
G. Numbers assigned to through streets: Through street numbering will
begin at the end of the street with the shortest straight-line distance
to the corner of Main Street and Station Avenue.
H. Even/Odd numbers: Starting at the end of the street with the shortest
straight-line distance to the corner of Main Street and Station Avenue,
the lefthand side of the street will be assigned odd numbers and the
righthand side of the street will be assigned even numbers.
I. Hammerhead lots and other lots with obstructed visibility from the
roadway: Within areas where development is situated on hammerhead
lots or lots with obstructed visibility from the vehicular access
to the building, the location of the residential building must be
considered. When a building is located a considerable distance from
the roadway or visibility to the building is obstructed from the roadway,
the building number shall be determined using the vehicular access
to the roadway.
J. Private rights-of-way (Residential):
(1) In situations where three or fewer buildings are located on a private unnamed right-of-way (sometimes referred to as a "shared driveway"), each residential building will be assigned a building number off the connecting public right-of-way or street. (See Chapter
381, Part
4, Shared Driveways, of the Code of the Town of Groton.)
(2) In situations where more than three residential structures are located on a private unnamed right-of-way (sometimes referred to as a "shared driveway"), the private drive shall be named. The Town Manager shall solicit and consider, but need not use, name suggestions from property owners on the road. Once a name has been approved, a Town standard street name sign shall be installed. (See Attachment 1 to Chapter
381, Code of the Town of Groton.)
(3) The buildings shall be numbered according to these principles using
the number interval method. The property numbers shall be posted in
accordance with the Town's street name sign standards.
K. Fractional numbers: Fractional numbers shall not be used. Alphabetical
suffixes are acceptable when a secondary property designation must
be assigned and no valid number is available. Alphanumeric suites
and apartment numbers may also be used.
L. Use of "L" or "R" as a suffix: Use of the letter "L" to designate
"left" or the letter "R" to designate "right" or the rear of a numbered
building shall not be used.
M. Use of LL as a prefix or suffix: The letters "LL" shall be used only
to designate lower level and may not be used for any other purpose.
N. Campuses: Campuses and campus-like complexes shall mark each and
every building on the campus using a numbering system that is mutually
agreeable to the Town of Groton and the property owner or owners.
In reaching such mutual agreement, facilitation of rapid and correct
response for public safety personnel shall be the highest priority
consideration. Designation of campuses and campus-like complexes for
numbering purposes shall be at the sole discretion of the Fire Chief.
O. Duplexes: Each unit in a duplex dwelling shall be assigned an alphanumeric
designation in accordance with the provisions stated for multifamily
houses.
P. Multifamily Houses: Each unit in a multifamily dwelling shall be
assigned an alphanumeric designation as follows:
(1) For single-story multifamily dwellings, the unit's designation
shall be composed of one or more alphabetic characters.
(2) For multistory multifamily dwellings, the unit's designation
shall be composed of one or more numeric characters followed by one
or more alphabetic characters. Spaces or hyphens between the numeric
characters and alphabetic characters are not allowed. The numeric
characters shall identify the floor upon which the unit is located,
and the alphabetical characters shall uniquely identify the unit on
that floor.
(3) Each floor in a multifamily building shall be assigned a unique floor
number from top to bottom, with the ground floor being the first floor
and increasing sequentially for each floor above the first floor,
except basement units which shall be assigned the prefix "LL" (lower
level).
(4) Each unit on a floor in a multifamily building shall be designated
alphabetically with Unit A starting at the left corner of the building
when facing the building from the vehicular access to the building.
If there are more than 26 units on a floor, Unit 27 will be designated
"AA," Unit 28 will be "BB" and so forth. Basement units shall be designated
with the prefix LL (lower level) followed by an optional floor number
and unit letter. Examples:
(a)
The eighth unit from the left front corner of the building of
a single-story multifamily dwelling would have the designation "H."
(b)
The fifth unit from the left front corner of the building on
the second floor of a multifloor multifamily dwelling would have the
designation "2E."
(c)
The 29th unit from the left front corner of the building on
the third floor of a multifloor multifamily dwelling would have the
designation "3CC."
Q. Numbering of accessory apartments: When an accessory apartment has
been authorized on a particular piece of property, the primary residence
shall use the assigned street number for the property . The accessory
residence shall use the assigned street number for the property followed
by an "A."
R. Apartments and residential condominiums: Each primary private access
road to an apartment or residential condominium complex with three
or more buildings shall be named, and a standard Groton street sign
shall be installed. At the sole discretion of the Town Manager, in
cases where the apartment units or residential condominiums are located
near the vehicular access to the building or along shallow parking
areas along the street, a separate street name may not be required.
S. Multiple-use properties: Each separate building should be assigned
an individual number. For properties with narrow street frontage,
the numbers may be borrowed from the next available number when necessary.
T. Commercial, office and industrial complexes: A choice must be made
among several methods:
(1) Assign the number to the main building where all of the mail is to
be received. Auxiliary buildings may be assigned separate numbers.
(2) Each principal building in the complex may require a separate number.
(3) For strip mall type shopping center developments, one number shall
be assigned to each freestanding building in the strip mall, and each
individual business shall be assigned a unique alphabetic unit or
suite designation. Basement units shall be designed with the prefix
"LL" (lower level). For security and emergency response purposes,
the business name and assigned address of each business shall be placed
on all of its entrances and loading areas.
(4) Interior mall shopping centers shall have one number assigned for
the entire mall. Individual businesses shall be assigned a unique
alphabetic unit or suite number. For security and emergency response
purposes, units in such interior mall shopping centers with individual
external entrances shall display the business name and assigned address
at all external entrances and loading areas.
See Code of the Town of Groton, Chapter
119, §
119-4, dated December 28, 2009.
See Code of the Town of Groton, Chapter
119, §
119-8, dated December 28, 2009.
If any provision, paragraph, sentence, or clause of these regulations
is held invalid for any reason by a court of competent jurisdiction,
all other provisions shall continue in full force and effect.
[Amended 10-1-2018 ATM
by Art. 14]
These regulations shall take effect upon adoption by the Groton Select Board in accordance with Chapter
119, §
119-6, of the Code of the Town of Groton.