City of Crystal Lake, IL Chapter 192 Buildings, Numbering of

[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Crystal Lake 12-20-2001 by Ord. No. 5385 (Art. III, Ch. II, Section M, of the 1993 Code); amended in its entirety 11-2-2010 by Ord. No. 6620. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

General penalty — See Ch. 1, Art. II.

Building Code — See Ch. 187.

Fees — See Ch. 241.

Fines — See Ch. 248.

Fire Code — See Ch. 251.

§ 192-1 Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to enhance the easy and rapid location of structures by law enforcement, fire, rescue, emergency medical services, residents, and visitors in the City of Crystal Lake. All lots, buildings and structures within the City of Crystal Lake shall be numbered by the Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department as follows.

§ 192-2 Naming system.

A. Component order. Components of a street address shall always be in the following order:

(1) Address number.

(2) Directional prefix if used.

(3) Street name.

(4) Street type.

(5) Unit or suite number.

(e.g., 123 N. Main St. Unit A)

B. Address numbers. Address numbers shall consist of whole numbers. Where that is not possible, an alpha-character added to the end of the address number shall be used. Fractions, spaces and characters shall not be used (e.g., 123A N. Williams St.).

C. Directional prefixes. Directional prefixes shall be used when the street crosses the base line. Dual direction, such as "northwest" or "southeast," shall not be used.

(1) The base line for the City of Crystal Lake shall be:

(a) Crystal Lake Avenue for north and south.

(b) Walkup Avenue for east and west.

(2) The base line for addresses employing the McHenry County system shall be:

(a) All numbers are south.

(b) All numbers are west.

D. Directional suffixes. Directional suffixes shall not be used.

E. Street types. Every street shall be assigned one street type. The standard street type shall be abbreviated, capitalized, and shall not include periods. Acceptable street type abbreviations can be found in Appendix C of the Postal Addressing Standards. Below are some common street types and abbreviations:

	Street Type	Abbreviation
	Alley	ALY
	Avenue	AVE
	Boulevard	BLVD
	Circle	CIR
	Court	CT
	Highway	HWY
	Lane	LN
	Parkway	PKWY
	Place	PL
	Plaza	PLZ
	Road	RD
	Street	ST
	Terrace	TER
	Trail	TR

F. Unit type. Standard unit types shall be abbreviated, capitalized, and shall not include periods. Acceptable unit type abbreviations can be found in Appendix G of the Postal Addressing Standards. Below are some common unit types and abbreviations:

	Unit Type	Abbreviation
	Apartment	APT
	Basement	BSMT
	Building	BLDG
	Department	DEPT
	Floor	FL
	Lobby	LBBY
	Office	OFC
	Suite	STE
	Unit	UNIT

§ 192-3 Street naming.

A. Naming system. All streets that serve more than one structure shall be named, regardless of the ownership. Creation of street names shall use the following criteria:

(1) No street shall be given the same name as an existing street within the boundaries of the City of Crystal Lake and the Crystal Lake Rural Fire Protection District.

(2) No streets shall have similar sounding names such as "Beach" and "Peach."

(3) Street names shall not include directions in their name, such as "West West Ridge" or "Southwind."

(4) Street names shall be the same throughout the entire length of the street.

B. Vanity or honorary street names and addresses. Vanity addresses are prohibited. Honorary street names shall not be used in place of the primary street address.

C. Cul-de-sacs.

(1) Cul-de-sacs that have seven or more lots (or a distance determined by the Addressing Committee) along their length shall be given a street name. Cul-de-sacs that do not meet the previous requirement shall be given the name of the street from which they get access.

(2) Exception to the rule: When the end of the cul-de-sac is not clearly visible from the entrance, then a different name shall be given to that street.

D. Street type usage. Every street shall be assigned a street type based on the roadway classification hierarchy, as listed below.

	Primary Type	Secondary Type
	Street	Terrace
	Avenue	Place
	Boulevard	Lane
	Drive	Circle
	Road	Court
	Parkway	Trail
	Highway

§ 192-4 Assignment of address numbers.

One address shall be assigned to each habitable structure that is not an accessory building or insubstantial in nature. Specific requirements are contained in § 192-5, Commercial addressing, § 192-6, Residential addressing, and § 192-7, Mixed-use addressing. When an apartment, unit or suite designation is required and there are more than two designations, then all portions shall receive an apartment, unit or suite designation.

A. Numeric sequence. Addresses shall be assigned so that they are in numeric sequence. When two or more buildings, on the same street, are located in a stacked configuration, the addresses shall be kept in sequence. The stacked building closest to the street shall have the lowest number.

B. Odd/Even numbering.

(1) Addresses shall be assigned with odd and even numbers based on the side of the street on which the structure is located and based on the following requirement per jurisdiction:

(a) City of Crystal Lake system:

[1] Odd numbers on the south and east sides of the street.

[2] Even numbers on the north and west sides of the street.

(b) McHenry County system:

[1] Odd numbers on the south and west sides of the street.

[2] Even numbers on the north and east sides of the street.

(2) Addresses on cul-de-sacs not requiring a separate street name will keep address numbers consistent with this standard; e.g., a small cul-de-sac will have all odd or even numbers based on the street from which the cul-de-sac gains entrance.

C. Sequence direction. Addresses shall increase based on the addressing system listed below:

(1) City of Crystal Lake system:

(a) Larger traveling north and south from Crystal Lake Avenue.

(b) Larger traveling east and west from Walkup Avenue.

(2) McHenry County system:

(a) Larger traveling west.

(b) Larger traveling south.

D. Consistency with distance-based grid. Address numbers change in the 100th designation based on the addressing system listed below:

(1) Every 1,000 feet in the City of Crystal Lake system.

(2) Every 1/10 of a mile in the McHenry County system.

E. Addressing consistency. Addresses located across the street from each other shall be assigned so that they are nearly equal. When more addresses are required on one side of the street, the opposite side will require wider spacing.

§ 192-5 Commercial addressing.

A. Separate tenant entrances. Commercial buildings with individual entrances for each tenant space shall receive a "unit" designation. The unit designation shall be a letter from A to Z. Every 20 linear feet will receive a unit designation. When a tenant space is larger than 20 feet, the unit designation shall be given based on the location of the main entrance. Unit designations shall increase in the same direction as required in § 192-4C, Sequence direction, and continue in a circular direction around the building, examples are contained in Appendix A.[1] A new address will be assigned at fire wall separations or other building demarks, such as change of direction or courtyards.

[1] Editor's Note: Appendix A is included at the end of this chapter.

B. Common entrances. Commercial buildings with a common entrance and tenant space entry inside the building shall receive a "suite" designation. The suite(s) designation will be a numeric designation. The 100th place shall identify the floor of the suite, e.g., 200 for a second-floor suite. Suite designation shall be consistent between floors, Suite 201 over Suite 101. The developer or owner shall be responsible for assigning the suite designation.

§ 192-6 Residential addressing.

A. Multifamily. Multifamily structures with individual entrances for each living space shall receive a separate address. Structures with a common entry and living space access from the inside of structure shall receive an apartment designation. The apartment(s) designation will be a numeric designation. The 100th place shall identify the floor of the apartment, e.g., 200 for a second-floor apartment. Apartment designation shall be consistent between floors, e.g., Apartment 201 over Apartment 101. The developer or owner shall be responsible for assigning the apartment(s) designation.

B. Corner lots. A corner lot shall receive an address on both streets on which the lot is located. When a residence is built, the address shall be assigned based on the location of the driveway.

§ 192-7 Mixed-use addressing.

Apartments over businesses. Structures with residential space(s) above a business shall receive an apartment designation. The apartment(s) designation will be a numeric designation. The 100th place shall identify the floor of the apartment, e.g., 200 for a second-floor apartment. The developer or owner shall be responsible for assigning the apartment(s) designation.

§ 192-8 Utility addressing.

A. This section is to be used to address utilities that overlap with building addresses. The following abbreviations shall be used to easily recognize a utility for special feature:

	Abbreviation	Utility	Description
	GN	General Number	Distinguishes an address that is used only to give a general vicinity of a project
	SC	Traffic Signal Control	Traffic signal controllers
	LC	Street Light Control	Street light controllers
	WM	Water Meter	Water meter that is not associated with a building address
	ES	Electric Service	Electric box or meter from a building's address
	LT	Lot	Lot that is capable of being subdivided and does not have any structures
	PR	Parks and Recreation	Address for park areas or outdoor sporting facilities

B. The method for assigning the address will remain the same except the abbreviation is used after the numeric designation, without spaces, and before the street name (e.g., 290PR Pathway CT to designate the ball-field).

§ 192-9 Change of address; Address Committee.

The following procedure will be used to process a request for a change in address.

A. Submission requirements. A letter from the property owner requesting the change must include the following information:

(1) Proof of ownership.

(2) Current address of the property.

(3) Property identification number (PIN).

(4) Statement of reason for change.

(5) Contact information.

B. Consideration and criteria. The City will consider all requests. If the request is granted, it shall comply with the addressing requirements. The request must meet the following criteria:

(1) Arises from a condition unique to the property.

(2) The change will not adversely affect public safety.

(3) The change complies with the addressing principles.

C. Address Committee.

[Amended 6-3-2014 by Ord. No. 7036]

(1) The Address Committee is made up of representatives from the Community Development Development, Police, and Fire Rescue Departments.

(2) Committee recommendations. The Address Committee may propose address changes to street names and numbering to improve public safety and allow easy recognition of properties.

§ 192-10 Numbering required; size and style of numbers; multitenant buildings.

A. It shall be the duty of the owners and occupants of every building, structure and house within the City to have placed thereon or on the property, in a place visible and readable from the public right-of-way, numbers of at least four inches high. All numbers shall be in Arabic (block) numerals at least four inches high. Existing numbers are acceptable on existing buildings if they are easily visible from the adjoining street. These numbers shall be of contrasting color to the color of the surface to which they will be attached. Script numbers are permitted, but they will not take the place of the four-inch Arabic numbers. It is also recommended that if the mailbox is adjacent to the street and in front of the structure, the owner or occupant also place the appropriate numbers on both sides of the mailbox or post for ease of identification.

B. Proper number. Every person whose duty it is to display an assigned number shall remove any different number that might be mistaken for, or confused with, the number assigned in conformance with this chapter.

C. The street number of multiple-tenant buildings with common entrances shall be placed in a prominent location visible from the adjoining street or parking area. Each tenant space shall have the number(s) or letter(s) assigned to that unit posted on the door of that unit.

D. Nonresidential multitenant structures shall place their address on the rear doors of their unit, meeting the standards of Subsection A above.

§ 192-11 New construction and subdivisions.

All new construction and subdivisions shall be named and numbered in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and as follows:

A. New construction. Whenever any residence or other structure is constructed or developed, it shall be the duty of the new owner to obtain an assigned number from the Fire Rescue Department. This shall be done at the time of the issuance of the building permit.

B. Prior to the start of construction of any structure on vacant land, the assigned street number shall be posted in a prominent location, visible from the adjoining street. No newly constructed structure shall receive a final occupancy permit unless the assigned street number is mounted on the structure next to the front entrance in a prominent location and visible from the street. If that location is not readily visible from the adjoining street, the number shall be placed elsewhere in close proximity to the front entrance where it is not obstructed.

C. New subdivisions. Any prospective subdivider shall provide the proposed road names for review and approval. Approval by the Fire Rescue Department shall constitute the assignment of road names and numbers to the lots in the subdivision.