Chapter 110.04 — UNIFORM NUMBERING SYSTEM

The Board of Supervisors has determined that a uniform system for numbering structures is required to protect the health, welfare and safety of those who live and work in the County. Such a system will enhance the ability of emergency vehicles to respond rapidly to calls, provide for an orderly election process, expedite postal and other delivery services and eliminate confusion and error in locating business places and residences.

(Prior Code, § 9490; Code 1997, § 15.04.010; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

The uniform numbering system shall be effective throughout the unincorporated areas of the County. The term "structures," as used in this chapter, is defined to include buildings which qualify for occupancy per the County building code, such as residential dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial buildings, government buildings, and any accessory buildings thereto deemed appropriate for a site address by the County Surveyor.

(Prior Code, § 9491; Code 1997, § 15.04.020; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

The established east-west and north-south base lines and existing numbering sequences shall determine the direction of the progression of street numbers, as follows:

A.

The prevailing direction of the street shall determine the selection of the base line to be used.

B.

The numbering of the base lines shall determine the selection of the first number on the street.

C.

Properties within a numbering area shall be numbered consecutively throughout the entire length of a street bearing one name, disregarding intersections or changes of direction. Unimproved but proposed sections shall be included in the numbering.

D.

Properties shall be numbered with two numbers assigned to each 25-foot interval measured at the centerline of the street. The even numbers shall be assigned to the right side and the corresponding odd numbers to the left side of the street in the direction of progression. Peculiar street layout or topography, such as hairpin turns, may require minor variance to this procedure.

E.

More than one number shall be reserved for parcels having more than 25 feet street frontage, but only one number and street name shall be assigned to each building or separate main entrance of the parcel.

F.

The County Surveyor shall assign the number closest to the main entrance (door or driveway). If more than one main entrance falls within the same 25-foot interval, the preceding or following number of both can be used.

G.

When, on a single parcel, there is more than one building or one main entrance for each 25-foot interval, such as housing projects and shopping centers, letters or suite numbers shall be used after the number for further identification.

H.

Driveways or courts giving access to several buildings may be given a separate street name.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.030; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

House numbers shall only be assigned to residential subdivision lots, other residential properties improved with structures, commercial buildings, and industrial buildings. Every owner or occupant of a dwelling unit or his or her agent shall within 30 days after assignment of a house number by the County install permanently on the premises the number issued, subject to the following provisions:

A.

Accessory buildings need not be numbered but, if located on a separate unit of frontage, may be assigned numbers if requested by the owner or proprietor of the principal establishment to which the building or buildings are accessory.

B.

All such numbers shall be placed in a horizontal sequence so as to be easily visible and legible from the road upon which the premises front. When the house is a substantial distance from a road, numbers shall be placed on a mailbox or post in a horizontal sequence, in a location adjacent to the driveway access intersection with the road. When the mailbox is on a road other than the road on which the premises front, then the house number and road name shall be clearly marked on the mailbox, to ensure proper mail delivery, and a post displaying the house number shall be installed adjacent to the driveway access intersection with the road.

C.

The numbers shall be of a size not less than four inches in height, except on mailboxes, in which case the numbers shall be of a size which are readable from a distance of five feet, and displayed on a contrasting background.

D.

Within 30 days of the effective date of the notice of number assigned, the owner of a dwelling unit or authorized agent then shall remove or obscure from public view any old or previous number not in accordance with the system.

E.

Premises not serviced by mail delivery will be issued house numbers for convenience and safety of residents, who may continue to use post office boxes as mailing addresses.

F.

The procedure for obtaining a building permit shall require an applicant to submit a detailed site plan, showing the driveway intersection with the access road, which will be routed to the County Surveyor for assignment of a house number. If the access road is not officially named for the purposes of addressing, the County Surveyor shall notify the applicant in writing of the procedure for road naming pursuant to Section 110.04.060. Access roads shall be officially named for addressing purposes and a house number assigned prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. Prior to a request for final inspection, house number shall be permanently displayed as set forth in Subsections B, C and D of this section.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.040; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

All numbers shall be assigned through the office of the County Surveyor as follows:

A.

Road alignments and their respective house numbering sequences shall be delineated on County base maps of a scale no smaller than one inch equals 1,000 feet.

B.

The County Surveyor shall be the official custodian of the map records. All disputes over official numbering of structures or parcels shall be decided by the County Surveyor. As assigned, house numbers shall be entered into the situs field of respective parcel records within the County public inquiry computer file.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.050; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

A.

To name a private road, the initiating landowner, who is only responsible for naming the road in which his or her structure will be addressed from, shall obtain a road name petition from the County Surveyor. The landowner shall choose a proposed road name which does not duplicate or sound like any existing road name within the County. The County Surveyor will provide prescreening assistance to determine whether proposed road names are duplications or sound-alikes. The landowner shall then obtain the signatures of at least 51 percent of the parcel owners whose parcels front the private road being named whether or not the owners gain access from that road. In addition, the landowner shall obtain approval signatures from the agency responsible for fire protection and the post office responsible for mail delivery. In the event of a dispute between said public agencies regarding road name selection, the County Surveyor shall have final authority for road name approval.

B.

After obtaining the necessary approval signatures, the landowner shall submit the road name petition to the County Surveyor for approval together with the following:

Record map or appropriate assessors map with the exact road alignment accurately plotted;

Applicable filing fee per fee schedule on file in the County Surveyor's office.

C.

Upon notification of approval from the County Surveyor, the initiating landowner shall, within 30 days, coordinate and cause the installation of a permanent sign which is legible and clearly marks the location and the name of the affected road. Typically, the road sign shall be placed appropriately at the intersection of the two roads, however, additional signs shall be erected at locations where the road forks or any other points along the road where there is a need for road alignment clarification. Maintenance of road signs shall be the responsibility of all parcel owners fronting the road. The design, size or material of the sign shall comply with the County subdivision design manual.

D.

If an applicant desires to name a private road but is unable to obtain the necessary petition signatures from the parcel owners that front the road being named, as set forth in Subsection A of this section, the following procedure shall be followed:

Applicant shall select one or more proposed road names, prescreened names for approval, obtain approval signatures from applicable post office and fire district or agency, make sufficient copies of partially completed road petition and mail via certified mail, return receipt, to all absentee parcel owners.

Absentee parcel owners shall be notified by the applicant that they must return the signed copy of the road name petition within 30 days of receipt.

If the required percentage of parcel owner signatures are not received after the 30 days, the applicant shall submit the completed road name petition documents together with the signed certified mail return receipts addressed to all parcel owners along the road being named to verify that a request for an approval signature was sent to each owner.

Applicant shall pay applicable filing fee.

The proposed road name shall be approved and processed.

E.

The procedure for changing the name of a private road is the same as set forth in Subsections A, B, C and D of this section, except that the initiating landowner must obtain the signatures of at least 75 percent of the parcel owners whose parcels front the private road being renamed, whether or not the owners gain access from that road. In addition, the applicable filing fee shall be paid.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.060; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

A.

The naming of an existing unnamed County road shall be done by an order adopted by the Board of Supervisors pursuant to Streets and Highways Code § 970.5 or 971.

B.

Proposals for County road name changes shall be submitted to the County Surveyor and adopted by the Board of Supervisors pursuant to Streets and Highways Code § 970.5.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.070; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988; Ord. No. 4092, § 1, 1989)

A road name petition shall be filed with the County Surveyor, using procedures set forth in Section 110.04.060, for all roads within final subdivision maps, planned developments, and parcel maps. The developer or subdivider shall be responsible for filing a separate road name petition for each and every road name within the development, whether or not the road is proposed to be a County road or a private road.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.080; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

Road naming shall conform to the following standards:

A.

Street names shall be short (under 12 letters if possible) and preferably in one word.

B.

Street names shall have a simple spelling and easy pronunciation.

C.

Prefixes such as north and south, east and west, upper and lower, etc., should be avoided.

D.

Suffixes shall be related to the type and importance of the street (e.g., the suffix "boulevard" should not be attached to the name of a minor residential street).

E.

Numbers or letters used as street names shall be avoided.

F.

Incongruous or offensive names shall not be selected.

G.

Street names identical, or sounding similar, to others shall not be selected.

H.

Street names shall be deemed duplicates regardless of a different suffix such as boulevard, lane, avenue, street, etc.

I.

A cul-de-sac road having a maximum length of 500 feet may use "court" as a suffix. Roads exceeding 500 feet in length shall use a different suffix.

J.

Roads which have a length of 500 feet or less and provide access to not more than the equivalent of two dwelling units need not be named as determined by the County Surveyor.

K.

A cul-de-sac street may bear the same name as the street it intersects, providing that the suffix is "court" (e.g., a cul-de-sac opening on Oak Street may be called Oak Court).

L.

Street names which would be geographically misleading shall be avoided.

M.

Selection of street names of similar nature, or according to categories (e.g., trees, states, etc.) is encouraged within a subdivision or neighborhood.

N.

A street having a continuous alignment shall bear the same name.

O.

Streets or portions of streets to be connected in the future into a continuous alignment shall bear the same name.

P.

Streets intersecting with one another, or forming an angle of less than 110 degrees, shall generally have different names.

Q.

Street extensions shall bear the same name as the existing street. When two dead end roads with separate names are joined together to make a continuous alignment, one road name shall be changed. The two factors to be considered shall be which road name has been in place the longest and how many property owners will be affected by the change. Final decision and authority on private roads shall rest with the County Surveyor, however, final authority on County roads shall rest with the Board of Supervisors.

R.

No personal last names shall be selected unless they have historical significance. Historical significance for road naming means that the personal name must appear in the applicable geographic location on the "Official Map of the County of El Dorado, State of California," adopted by the Board of Supervisors, October 1908. Said map is on file in the office of the County Surveyor.

S.

Selection of the name and suffix of the streets in a new subdivision shall be the responsibility of the developer, within the limitations set forth in this chapter.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.090; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988; Ord. No. 4092, § 2, 1989)

Proposed road names shall not be approved if they duplicate or sound like any existing road names found within the unincorporated area of the County, City of Placerville, or City of South Lake Tahoe.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.100; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

The County Surveyor shall resolve all conflicts related to road name duplication or any procedure set forth in this chapter. Decisions made by the County Surveyor may be appealed to the Board of Supervisors in accordance with the provisions under Chapter 2.09 et seq.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.110; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

It shall be the responsibility of all agencies concerned about house numbering to notify the County Surveyor in writing when a parcel owner or group of parcel owners have failed to post a house number or failed to erect a proper street sign. Upon receipt of said notification, the County Surveyor shall notify the appropriate property owners and advise them of the statutory requirements that must be met. Property owners shall have 30 days from the date they receive notification to comply with the provisions of this chapter. Failure to comply will result in a violation pursuant to Section 110.04.130.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.120; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)

Any person, firm, partnership, copartnership or corporation, whether as principal, agent or employee, failing or refusing to display a proper house number after notice of such has been given in accordance with this chapter, or willfully displaying or permitting to be displayed any improper number after aforementioned notice, or failing to erect a street sign after naming a road, or erecting an unlawful street sign, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof may be punished according to the general penalties described in Chapter 1.24.

(Code 1997, § 15.04.130; Ord. No. 3862, (part), 1988)