City of Saco, ME Building-and-Street-Numbering Addressing Standards

Article III Building-and-Street-Numbering Addressing Standards

[Amended 10-2-2017; 6-6-2022[1]]

Editor's Note: This ordinance also renumbered former §§ 186-48 through 186-63 as §§ 186-53 through 186-68, respectively.

§ 186-40 Purpose; findings.

Purpose. The purpose of these standards is to enhance the ease and rapid location identification of buildings and units by law enforcement, Fire Department, and emergency medical services personnel.

Findings. t is the responsibility of the City to protect the lives and property of the residents of Saco, and it is the desire of the City to operate efficient and effective public safety services. These efficient and effective public safety operations are inhibited by the current inconsistent residential building and street numbering process.

§ 186-41 Definitions.

As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

ADDRESSING OFFICER (AO)

The AO is the City staff member responsible for all issues involving the development and maintenance of the E-911 addressing information for the City of Saco. The AO may work collaboratively with other City staff members to assign, correct, and update addressing as needed.

BUILDING

A walled and roofed building for purposes of residential, business, commercial, industrial, or similar use.

CITY

The City of Saco, Maine.

COMMUNITY

For purposes of this article, the City of Saco, Maine.

ROAD

For purposes of this article, any highway, street, avenue, lane, private way, or similar paved, gravel, or dirt thoroughfare.

UNIT

A portion of a building for use as a dwelling unit or business, commercial, industrial, or similar use for which unit number(s) are required to facilitate identification for emergency response purposes. For purposes of this article, the terms "unit" and "suite" are interchangeable and have the same meaning.

§ 186-42 Authority.

This article is adopted pursuant to and consistent with Municipal Home Rule authority as provided for in Article VIII, Part 2, Section 1, of the Constitution of the State of Maine and 30-A M.R.S.A. § 3001. The Addressing Officer and Code Enforcement Officer shall have the authority to interpret, administer, and enforce this article.

§ 186-43 Designation of numbers; Street Numbering Map.

All buildings shall bear a distinctive street number in accordance with and as designated upon the Street Numbering Map, on file with the City of Saco.

§ 186-44 Naming system.

All roads that serve three or more buildings or units shall be named regardless of whether the ownership is public or private. A road name assigned by the municipality shall not constitute or imply acceptance of the road as a public way.

The following criteria shall govern the naming system:

(1)

No two roads shall be given the same name.

(2)

No two roads shall have similar sounding names.

(3)

Each road shall have the same name throughout its entire length.

(4)

In cases where duplicate road names currently exist, the Addressing Officer shall require that one of the duplicate road names be renamed.

(a)

In cases where existing road names are to be renamed, the owners of buildings and/or units on the road to be renamed shall be provided the opportunity to participate in the renaming of the road.

(b)

The selected road name will be made by consensus of the property owners.

(c)

Should the property owners not be able to come to consensus on a road name, the City retains the right to name the roadway.

§ 186-45 Numbering system.

The following criteria shall govern the numbering system:

Numbers shall be assigned along both sides of the road, with even numbers appearing on the left side of the road and odd numbers appearing on the right side of the road, as the numbers ascend.

Addressing shall be from south to north from the Saco River based on existing addressing throughout the City to maintain consistency with current addressing patterns.

The number assigned to each building or unit shall be that of the numbered interval falling closest to the driveway of said building.

Every building with more than one occupancy shall have a separate unit number for each unit. Unit numbers shall be assigned by the Addressing Officer following Enhanced E-911 recommendations and provisions of this article.

§ 186-46 Display of numbers.

All buildings and/or units shall display numbers in accordance with the provisions of this article. The number shall be displayed upon the front of the building and/or unit on the driveway side facing the street. The number shall be plainly visible from the street. Houses that are set back out of view from the road shall place a post or sign at the driveway entrance, upon which shall be affixed the herein specified numbers.

For two-digit numbers, the sign shall be five inches wide by five inches long.

For three-digit numbers, the sign shall be eight inches wide by five inches long.

For multiple numbers, two- or three-digit numbers are to be in order and sequential, allowing five inches for each number. The post/sign shall not be considered a structure which must conform to Zoning Ordinance setbacks. The post/sign shall be placed out of the City's right-of-way and shall be six feet in height.

For multi-unit buildings, the number shall be displayed as outlined in this article. Each individual unit shall be clearly labeled using the numbers assigned in accordance with provisions of this article.

Separate unit numbers within a building shall be numbered. The number of each floor and unit shall be assigned by the Addressing Officer using 101, 201, and 301 series and appropriate subletters to designate floor levels.

The City may require interior directional wayfinding signage to properly identify locations within buildings and/or units.

§ 186-47 Number size and color.

Numbers shall be in Arabic figures, be no less than four inches in height and a one-half-inch-wide stroke and shall contrast in color with the color of the building or background to which they are attached.

§ 186-48 Illegal display of numbers.

No person shall affix or allow to be affixed a different street number from the one designated on the Street Numbering Map on file with the City.

§ 186-49 Existing private ways.

If there are three or more developed parcels that abut an existing private lane or way, the owners of those lots, with a consensus of opinion, shall petition the Addressing Officer to name the private way. The name of the private way cannot conflict with or sound similar to existing road names. It will be the sole responsibility of the owners to purchase a street sign from the Department of Public Works, and maintain the street sign at the entrance to the private way in accordance with public works standards for public and private road signs. The City will then issue street numbers for that road.

§ 186-50 All buildings and/or units to comply.

All buildings and/or units shall be named and numbered in accordance with the provisions of this article and as follows:

New construction. Whenever any unit or building is constructed or developed, it shall be the duty of the new owner to obtain an assigned number from the Addressing Officer. This shall be done upon building permit issuance.

New subdivisions. Any prospective subdivider shall show a proposed road name and lot numbering system on the street name request/approval form and on the preliminary application submission to the Planning Board. Approval by the Planning Board, after consultation with the Addressing Officer, shall constitute the assignment of road names and numbers to the lots and/or units in the subdivision.

Redevelopment. Existing buildings undergoing unit reorganization, redevelopment, reconstruction or similar shall comply with provisions of this article.

All existing buildings and/or units shall comply with provisions of this article when contacted by the City to do so.

§ 186-51 Effective date.

This article shall become effective as of July 7, 2022.

It shall be the duty of the Addressing Officer to notify by mail or electronically each property owner, the U.S. Postal Service, and all City departments of the new address at least 60 days prior to the effective date of its use.

It shall be the duty of each property owner to comply with this article, including posting of new property numbers in compliance with this article, within 60 days following notification. On new buildings, numbering shall be installed prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy.

§ 186-52 Violations and penalties.

Any person who, after being notified by the City of Saco, fails to comply with any of the provisions of this article within the time limit of not less than 30 days specified in such notice shall pay a fine as delineated in § 1-18 (Enforcement actions and civil penalties) of the City's Code.