Sonoma County Municipal Code § 13-46 Addresses for buildings

This division establishes minimum signing and building numbering requirements to facilitate locating a fire and to avoid delays in response.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.00.

(a) All roads serving more than two (2) parcels shall be identified by a road name.

(b) All public roads requiring a road name shall be approved by the board of supervisors pursuant to procedures established by resolution or ordinance of the board of supervisors. Any public road having a road name may be renamed using the procedures for naming a public road.

(c) All private roads requiring a road name shall be named by the director of permit and resource management or Sonoma County Fire Prevention Division pursuant to procedures established by resolution or ordinance of the board of supervisors. Any private road having a road name may be renamed using the procedures for naming a private road.

(d) When naming or renaming any road, the board of supervisors or the director of permit and resource management, as the case may be, shall use the following standards:

(1) Road names shall not be greater than eighteen (18) characters in length, exclusive of road digits and suffixes.

(2) Road names shall have simple spelling and easy pronunciation.

(3) Road names shall be compatible with road and street names in cities and other counties where appropriate.

(4) Road names shall not duplicate or cause confusion with existing road names. Road names shall be deemed to be duplicates if they have different suffixes, but are otherwise the same.

(5) Road names that are numbers or letters shall be avoided.

(6) Road names that are geographically misleading shall be avoided.

(7) Road names that are inappropriate or offensive shall be prohibited.

(8) A road having a continuous alignment shall bear the same name.

(9) Road extensions shall bear the same name as the existing road.

(10) Roads or portions of roads to be connected in the future into a continuous alignment shall bear the same name.

(11) Roads intersecting one another, or forming a deflection angle of greater than ninety (90) degrees shall generally have different names.

(12) A cul-de-sac road may bear the same name as the road it intersects, provided that the suffix is court or place.

(13) No road shall be named such that it will intersect itself or create an intersection with a road having a duplicate name.

(14) Any other standards established by resolution or ordinance of the board of supervisors.

(15) All road names shall be approved by the area 911 coordinator and local fire chief within ten (10) days of notification.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020; Ord 97-0827, 1997; Res. 02-0212, 2002)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.01

All letters, numbers and symbols designating names on road signs shall be according to county road standards.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.02

All road signs shall be visible and legible from both directions of vehicle travel for a distance of at least one hundred feet (100'). All road signs shall indicate the road name and whether the road is public or private in each direction of vehicle travel in conformance with county road standards.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.02.

All road signs shall have an orientation and height in conformance with county road standards.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.02

All road signs identifying intersecting roads shall be placed at the intersection of such roads.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.02

All road signs identifying traffic access or flow limitations, including but not limited to, weight or vertical clearance limits, dead-end roads, one-way roads or single traffic lane conditions, shall be placed as follows:

(a) At the intersection preceding the traffic access limitation; and

(b) No more than one hundred feet (100') before such traffic access limitation.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

All buildings shall be identified by an address issued by the director of permit and resource management. when issuing addresses, the director of permit and resource management shall use the following standards:

(a) Addresses shall be compatible with addresses in cities and other counties where appropriate.

(b) Addresses shall be assigned to reflect the road from which the primary driveway originates.

(c) Addresses shall be issued in sequential order and have even numbers on one side of the road and odd on the other. In general, the even numbers shall be on the north and east sides of roads and/or on the right when facing in the direction of increasing magnitude. Existing addresses for roads requiring a road name change that do not conform to the provisions of this subsection may be accepted if the sequence is in logical order and the addresses are approved by the director of permit and resource management and the county fire warden/fire marshal.

(d) All buildings other than accessory buildings shall be assigned separate addresses. Individual units within residential and commercial buildings may be assigned subsidiary numbers or letters (e.g., apartment 10; suite A). Where possible individual units in multiple story buildings shall be assigned numbering sequences that identify the floor by the leading digit(s).

(e) Any other standards adopted by resolution or ordinance of the board of supervisors or by administrative regulation of the director of permit and resource management.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.03.

(a) Numbers for one- and two-family dwellings. Numbers for one- and two-family dwellings shall be a minimum of four inches (4") high with a minimum stroke width of one-half inch (0.5"). Where access is by means of a private road and the building cannot be viewed from the public way, a monument, pole, or other sign or means shall be used to identify the structure.

(b) Numbers for other than one- and two- family dwellings. Numbers for other than one- and two- family dwellings shall be a minimum of 12 inches (12") high with a minimum stroke width of one inch (1"). Suite numbers for other than one- and two-family dwellings shall be a minimum of six inches (6") high and one-half inch (0.5") stroke.

Exceptions:

1. These requirements may be modified with the approval of the fire code official.

2. Illuminated address numbers are not required for existing buildings where approved; reflective numbers are to be installed.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.01, 1274.03, 1274.04.

(a) All buildings shall have a permanently posted address, which shall be placed on building and shall be plainly visible and legible from the road on which the address is located or the primary driveway. The numbers shall contrast with their background.

(b) All buildings shall have a permanently posted address, which shall be placed at each driveway entrance and shall be visible and legible from both directions of travel along the road on which the address is located.

Exception: An approved internally lighted building address device may be used when such building address device is located on the building and the building is located within thirty feet (30') of the edge of the road on which the address is located.

(c) All address signs along one-way roads shall be visible from both the intended direction of travel and the opposite direction.

(d) Where multiple addresses are required at a single driveway, such addresses shall be mounted on a single approved post.

(e) Where a road provides access solely to a commercial building, the address sign shall be placed at the nearest road intersection providing access to the site.

(Ord. No. 6318, § I, 8-11-2020)

State Law reference— California Code of Regulations, Title 14 Natural Resources Code, Division 1.5, Chapter 7, Subchapter 2, Article 1-5, SRA Fire Safe Regulations, 1274.04.