HomeMy WebLinkAboutCivic Addressing Policy CBRM Civic Addressing Policy
Approved by CBRM Council
June 26, 2007
Amended:
October 15, 2013
February 17, 2015
March 15, 2016
September 19, 2017
July 10, 2018
2
Civic Addressing Policies
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preamble..............................................................................................................................................................................4
StreetNames.......................................................................................................................................................................4
Naming New Streets and Renaming Existing Streets.........................................................................................................4
Numbering...........................................................................................................................................................................4
Re-numbering......................................................................................................................................................................4
Community Renaming\Redelineation.................................................................................................................................5
Notification..........................................................................................................................................................................5
Interpretationof Policy........................................................................................................................................................6
Applicationof Policy...........................................................................................................................................................6
ScheduleA-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7
StreetNaming.......................................................................................................... 7
GeneralPrinciples...............................................................................................................................................................7
CBRMcentreline file..........................................................................................................................................................7
Assigning names for new streets and existing unnamed streets.........................................................................................8
Renaming of existing streets and roads...............................................................................................................................8
Procedure upon approval of new names.............................................................................................................................9
Signage for streets and roads.............................................................................................................................................10
Community Identification Signage....................................................................................................................................I I
ScheduleB -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------13
Civic Numbering Guidelines-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------13
GeneralPrinciples.............................................................................................................................................................13
Guidelines..........................................................................................................................................................................13
General..............................................................................................................................................................................13
WaterAccess.....................................................................................................................................................................14
More Than One Building or Unit On A Lot.....................................................................................................................14
Posting of Numbers required by bylaw.............................................................................................................................14
3
Civic Addressing Policies
Preamble
1. Accurate civic addressing is essential to the Municipality not only for proper
functioning of the emergency response system (E-911) but also to ensure that tax and
water billing, voter registration, building permit administration, and other municipal
responsibilities are carried out in a timely, efficient and cost effective manner. The
purpose of this policy is to ensure that civic addressing in the CBRM meets the highest
possible standards. Each civic address has three components:
• A unique community name with clearly defined boundaries
• A street name which is unique within the community and which may be part or
all of a street within a defined address range
• A unique civic number, within the unique street address range, on the unique
street, within the unique community
Street Names
2. Official street names for all streets and roads in the Cape Breton Regional
Municipality shall appear in the CBRM road centreline file. Where a conflict exists
between the CBRM dataset and another database, the CBRM database shall prevail.
The CBRM centreline file may include trunk and route numbers assigned by the
Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Public Works as an alias in addition
to the official street name.
Naming New Streets and Renaming Existing Streets
3. The naming of new streets and of any previously unnamed existing streets and any
changes to existing street names shall comply with the procedures and criteria for
Street Naming found in Schedule A.
Numbering
4. Civic numbers shall be assigned by the Civic Addressing Coordinator in accordance
with the Civic Numbering Guidelines found in Schedule B.
Re-numbering
5. The Civic Addressing Coordinator may initiate renumbering of a structure or of
structures where existing numbering is invalid or creates confusion.
6. When considering the renumbering of all or part of a street, the Civic Addressing
Coordinator shall choose a solution that addresses public safety concerns and
minimizes the disruption to the affected residents and property owners.
4
Civic Addressing Policies
7. Numbering changes are discouraged where there is no public safety issue involved.
8. All numbers assigned in accordance with Policies 5 and 6 shall conform with the
Civic Numbering Guidelines in Schedule A.
9. Decisions of the Civic Addressing Coordinator shall be final.
Community Renaming\Redelineation
10. Community boundaries are intended to be very stable over time and as a result
changes in community boundaries are discouraged. Any change in community
boundaries, including the elimination of communities or the creation of new
communities, shall be subject to approval by the CBRM Council, unless the change
does not involve any properties with a civic address. Communities affected by
changes in community boundaries shall be informed, and consulted before, during
and after the process.
11. Notwithstanding Policy 10, the Civic Addressing Coordinator shall ensure that
where a road is built or extended across a community boundary and the sole access
is through a single community, the boundary of the latter community shall be
redelineated to include the street and all lots accessing it as shown in a Final Plan of
Subdivision. In such cases the decision of the Civic Addressing Coordinator shall
be final and approval by the Council shall not be required.
Notification
12. The Civic Addressing Coordinator shall be responsible for notifying property
owners and occupants of civic address changes, as specified in the Civic Addressing
Bylaw. The Civic Addressing Coordinator shall also ensure that the following
departments or agencies are notified of all civic address changes:
• CBRM Finance
• CBRM Engineering and Public Works
• CBRM Water Utility
• CBRM Communications Centre
• CBRM Citizen Service Centre Supervisor
• CBRM Fire Services
• Nova Scotia Land Information Centre
• Nova Scotia Assessment officials
• Nova Scotia E911 officials
• Canada Post
s
Civic Addressing Policies
Interpretation of Policy
13. When neccessary, the Civic Addressing Coordinator may use the Nova Scotia Civic
Address Users Guide, and any similar publications that may be published in the
future, to assist with interpretation of this policy.
Application of Policy
14. For clarification purposes, it is recognized that this policy does not apply to lands
within the Eskasoni First Nation reserve or to lands within the Membertou First
Nation reserve. However, it is the intent of CBRM Council that CBRM officials
will cooperate to the greatest extent possible with First Nations officials on civic
addressing matters to the benefit of all residents.
6
Civic Addressing Policies
Schedule
Street Naming
General Principles
• simplicity and logic
• minimization of error in emergency response situations
• uniformity and consistency throughout the region to the greatest extent possible
• ability to incorporate mechanisms for continuing review
• coordination with the civic addressing system
• coordination with the regional Geographic Information System
• coordination with Canada Post
The following matters are included in this Schedule:
• the CBRM centreline file
• procedures for the review and approval of new road names
• procedures for the changing or confirmation of existing road names
• steps to be followed upon approval of new street names
• street signage
• community identification signage
CBRM centreline file
Al. The Planning Department will maintain a CBRM centreline file for the region; in
cases where there is a dispute over the proper name of a road or the spelling of the
name the CBRM centreline file will prevail.
A2. All roads (municipal, provincial, and private) will be included in the centreline file.
A3. Roads will be identified in the centreline file based on the community within which
they are located.
A4. The Planning Department will be responsible for the maintenance and updating of
the centreline file.
7
Civic Addressing Policies
Assigning names for new streets and existing unnamed streets
A5. There shall be no duplication of names in the CBRM.
A6. There shall be no similar sounding names, ie., "MacDonald" and "MacDonnell".
A7. If the above conditions are satisfied, the developer of the street may choose the
name providing that it is consistent with all other policies in this Schedule.
A8. Should there not be a name forwarded by a developer, the Civic Addressing
Coordinator will select one suitable for the community from a pool of possible road
names to be compiled from the names of CBRM residents who lost their lives
serving in the Canadian Armed Forces or while serving as an emergency response
official; for some communities, pools of names may be developed based on other
criteria.
A9. Where a new road is a continuation of an existing road, the new road will be given
the same name as the existing road wherever possible; where a new road is not a
continuation of an existing road different names must be used.
A10. Suffixes to be used are listed in Table One.
Al 1. Road names, including unabbreviated suffixes, shall have no more than 24
characters.
Al2. Use of the word "extension"in a name is prohibited, and use of any word
commonly considered vulgar, racist or sexist is prohibited. The Civic Addressing
Coordinator may seek the advice of the CBRM Diversity Committee in determining
the suitability of words proposed to be used in street names.
A13. The decision of the Civic Addressing Coordinator shall be final, EXCEPT where a
new public street is created by means other than by plan of subdivision. In the latter
case the Civic Addressing Coordinator shall forward a recommendation to the
General Committee for approval.
A.14 When a development complex (e.g. an apartment building complex) is proposed for
a single lot, the Civic Address Coordinator may assign a name to the private
driveway using the suffix Estate. (amendment adopted July 10th, 2018)
Renaming of existing streets and roads
A15. Renaming of existing streets shall be discouraged unless the renaming will reduce
the likelihood of confusion in the event of an emergency.
A16. There shall be no similar sounding names, ie., "MacDonald" and "MacDonnell"
within a community or adjacent communities. Similar sounding names should be
avoided altogether if possible.
A17. Where the road to be renamed is the continuation of another road the same name
should apply wherever possible; applying different names to different sections of the
same road is discouraged. Where the road to be renamed is not a continuation of
another road the two roads should have different names.
8
Civic Addressing Policies
A18. Road renamings are subject to the approval of the General Committee and may be
initiated by the Civic Addressing Coordinator, the General Committee, or by
residents of affected properties.
A19. New names may be suggested by residents providing that any suggested name
complies with all other policies in this Schedule; if no name is suggested, the
Committee will select one based on the same criteria as new streets.
A20. Renamings to take place only following a public meeting in the affected area; notice
of the meeting to be circulated beforehand to residents, municipal councillor, and in
the case of roads maintained by the Province, the Department of Transportation and
Public Works.
A21. Renamings should reduce the likelihood of confusion or error in the event of an
emergency
A22. Confirmations of existing names (where confusion exists) will follow the same
procedure as a renaming.
A23. Suffixes to be used are listed in Table One. Where an existing street has a suffix not
found in Table One, it may be used in the CBRM centreline file but shall not be
abbreviated.
A24. Road names, including unabbreviated suffixes, shall have no more than 24
characters.
A25. Suffix changes alone will not require public meeting.
A26. Use of the word "extension"in a name is prohibited, and use of any word
commonly considered vulgar, racist or sexist is prohibited. The Civic Addressing
Coordinator may seek the advice of the CBRM Diversity Committee in determining
the suitability of words proposed to be used in street names.
A27. Where there are two unconnected sections of street with the same name, the section
of street with the fewest addresses will be renamed.
A28. The decision of the General Committee shall be final.
A29. When considering renaming a public street or private road, the General Committee
shall choose a solution that addresses public safety concerns and shall also have
regard for the following:
(a.) the potential confusion created for emergency and other municipal services,
commercial delivery services, and the travelling public by renaming the street;
(b.) the number of residential units affected and potential costs to residents\owners;
(c.) the number and type of businesses affected and potential costs to
owners\occupiers;
(d.) the costs of replacing street and traffic signs; and
(e.) the historical significance, if any, of the existing street name.
Procedure upon approval of new names
A30. Notification of the new name shall be sent to E911 officials, Canada Post, Nova
Scotia Geomatics Centre, Councillor for the affected area, CBRM fire and police
officials, and CBRM Public Works (CBRM and private roads) or NSDOT (for
9
Civic Addressing Policies
provincial roads). In the case of Canada Post and 911 officials, the written
notification shall include a revised civic addressing scheme if applicable.
A31. The new name shall be added to CBRM centreline file; old name shall be deleted if
applicable.
A32. CBRM GIS shall be updated with the street in question identified by its new name.
A33. Required signage shall be erected
A34. The Civic Addressing Coordinator shall be responsible for ensuring that all of the
above tasks are completed in a timely manner
Signage for streets and roads
A35. Every intersection shall have signs identifying all streets which appear in the CBRM
CBRM centreline file. Exceptions to this rule are as follows:
(a) The Area Manager for CBRM Public Works may waive the requirement where
a collector street intersects a number of minor streets in close proximity to each
other. In these cases a street sign for the collector street shall not be required at
every intersection.
(b) Streets or roads that are located on lands owned by the Government of Canada
or an agency thereof are not required to be identified with street signage as outlined
in this policy unless the street was maintained by a former town or city prior to
1995 and is currently maintained by the CBRM, in which case it shall be treated for
signage purposes as if owned by the CBRM. For other federal streets or roads
signage shall be at the discretion of the appropriate federal department or agency,
although Council, through this policy, encourages the installation of signage
consistent with this policy to the greatest extent possible.
A36. Signs for all CBRM streets, private streets and any other streets not owned by the
provincial government will be erected by CBRM Public Works at the expense of
CBRM.
This shall include the installation and maintenance of signs on private property
where necessary. Roads owned by the Province shall have signs erected by the
Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Public Works.
A37. All signs shall display the correct spelling and suffix, as shown in the CBRM
centreline file. If necessary, Public Works Staff shall check with the Civic
Addressing Coordinator to confirm the name and verify the correct spelling and
suffix. Streets existing prior to the adoption of this policy may have a sign
displaying a suffix not shown in Table One or no suffix at all (for example,
Esplanade).
A38. Street suffixes may be abbreviated as shown in the Table One "Street Suffixes".
Any suffixes not shown in Table One may be displayed on signs but must be
unabbreviated.
A39. Where a street has been named after a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces a
poppy may be added to the sign.
A40. (a) All street signs for roads owned by CBRM shall display reflective white letters
10
Civic Addressing Policies
on a reflective green background. The size and font of the lettering on the signs
shall be standardized throughout the CBRM. In order to clarify that the road is
owned by CBRM, the abbreviation "CBRM" shall appear in very small letters in the
lower right hand corner of the sign.
(b) All street signs for roads owned by the Province of Nova Scotia shall use a
design and colour scheme approved by the Province.
(c) All other street signs shall use black lettering on a white background.
(d) Legibility of the signs to motorists and pedestrians at night or in adverse
weather shall be the most important consideration in the design and construction of
all street signs.
A41. Variations from the standards identified in A39(a) and A39(c) shall be permitted on
request for specific business districts, neighbourhoods or communities, providing
that the cost of designing and constructing the signage for such a district is borne by
the organization making the request, and providing that the Civic Addressing
Coordinator approves the design in accordance with all other relevant CBRM civic
addressing policies. These non-standard signs shall be erected by CBRM Public
Works.
Community Identification Signage
A42. Community signs shall be erected at the entrance to each community at the
community boundary. Each community shall have at least one sign, and there may
be additional signs erected wherever major roads cross a community boundary. All
community signs shall incorporate the official name of the community as approved
by CBRM Council.
A43. (a) Community signs may include words other than the official name, providing
that the official name is larger than any other words (other than the translation of
the official name into any other language). Any additional wording must be
approved by the Civic Addressing Coordinator.
(b) Community signs may be bilingual(for example, English/Gaelic or
English/Mi'kmaq), if approved by General Committee, providing that one of the
languages used is English.
(c) Where a translation of an official community name appears on the sign, the
official
name must be closer to the top of the sign than the translation, and must be larger
or the same size as the translation.
(e) Easy recognition of the community's official name by motorists shall be the
priority when a sign is to be erected which incorporates words other than the
official name.
A44. Community signs may be erected by CBRM Public Works or, along roads owned
and maintained by the Province, by the Nova Scotia Department of Transportation
and Public Works.
Civic Addressing Policies
Table One: Street Suffixes
Acceptable Suffix Abbreviation
CONNECTOR CONNECTOR
STREET ST
CLOSE CLOSE
WAY WAY
BOULEVARD BLVD
ROAD RD
HEIGHTS HTS
CRESCENT CRES
COURT CRT
DRIVE DR
LANE LN
PLACE PL
HIGHWAY HWY
AVENUE AVE
ESTATE* EST
* the suffix"Estate" is only to be used for a private driveway servicing a development complex all of
which is on the same lot parcel. (amendment adoptedluly10t",2018)
12
Civic Addressing Policies
Schedule B
Civic Numbering Guidelines
General Principles
Sequentiality - numbering should generally start from the lowest numbered intersection
and numbers should be assigned in ascending order.
Uniformity - numbers should be proportionately spaced along the entire length of a street
to help in finding the general location of structures.
Uniqueness - each individual dwelling unit or commerciahindustrial establishment having
its own external entrance should have its own whole civic number.
Guidelines
General
B 1. Civic numbers shall be assigned every twenty (20) feet of frontage along new public
streets and private roads. Along existing streets where a civic addressing scheme is
already in place a higher interval between numbers may be used providing the
interval is no greater than thirty (30) feet. In areas where structures are located
unusually close together the interval may be reduced to less than 20 ft. if necessary.
B2. Even numbers shall be on the right hand side and odd numbers on the left hand side
of street in ascending order from the numbering origin including on culs-de-sac and
other dead end streets.
B3. Where lot frontage is more than twenty (20) feet, a number shall in most cases be
assigned to correspond with the approximate centre of the front main wall of the
structure.
B4. A structure on a corner lot or other lot having more than one frontage may be
assigned a number on either street, based on the location of the front entrance.
B5. When the entrance to a structure is obscured or if the structure is best reached for
emergency purposes by the driveway, the civic number may be assigned to the
driveway.
B6. All principal buildings shall be assigned a civic number. Numbers may also be
assigned to other structures (such as telephone booths, trailhead signs, and
recreational sites) by the Civic Addressing Coordinator if deemed advisable from
an emergency response perspective.
B7. Where a new number cannot be assigned within an existing range of civic numbers,the
renumbering of all or part of the street shall be the preferred option,with the exception
of the following two options, in which case an alpha suffix may be assigned and all
13
Civic Addressing Policies
buildings sharing the same number shall be assigned a different sequential suffix.
a. A maximum of four alpha suffixes per building may be used under the following
circumstances:
• the lot parcel does not have the potential to be further subdivided;
• only one driveway intersects with the public street/road; and
• the lot parcel is an irregular shaped lot.
b. Where a development would result in the re-numbering of two or more civic addresses,
an A and B alpha suffix per building may be used when one or more semi-detached
dwellings are to be constructed as infill development(i.e.in an urban service streetscape
where development exists on either side of the proposed semi-detached dwelling(s).
B8. Where a new number is assigned within an existing range of civic numbers, the
number shall be applied to maintain consistency in the existing numbering sequence.
B9. Fractions shall not be used as part of a civic number.
1310. Only the first four characters of the alphabet shall be permitted as part of a civic
number.
Water Access
B 11. Where access to a property is by water only, the street name shall be deemed to be
the name of the island or waterbody as listed in the Nova Scotia Gazetteer.
B 12. Where access to a property on an island or waterbody is by water only, the numbers
shall be assigned along the entire waterfront and the numbering origin shall be the
most southerly point.
B 13. Odd numbers shall be on the east side and even numbers on the west side of the
island or waterbody in ascending order from the numbering origin.
B 14. Civic numbers shall be assigned every 20 feet of frontage around an island or
waterbody
More Than One Building or Unit On A Lot
B 15. Every principal building or structure on a lot shall have its own civic number.
B 16. Each dwelling unit in a semi-detached, duplex,triplex, or townhouse building and each
anchor establishment within a commercial/industrial building having its own external
entrance shall be assigned its own civic number unless the provisions of B7. and B 10.
can be met. In structures where individual units use a common entrance (such as
apartment buildings)the structure will be assigned one civic number in accordance with
this policy but individual units may have unit numbers.
Posting of Numbers required by bylaw
B 17. Owners of structures shall be required to post civic numbers that have been
assigned to their structures, as specified in the Civic Addressing Bylaw.
14
Civic Addressing Policies