Questions and Answers
As the Township has received a number of inquiries from the notice that was provided to land-owners respecting the civic addressing project, a Question and Answer list has been developed to provide a quick reference to some of the more common questions.
Background
The Township has been notified by emergency responders that delays have occurred when responding to situations in Stone Mills. These delays have been attributed to deficiencies in our system of Civic Addressing.
This matter was considered by Council and Staff and it was determined that the first step was to advise residents of the need to make amendments to our system of civic addressing. A Notice Of Public Hearing was released on May 1, 2017 that advised the public of an open house that was held on July 8, 2017. At this open house, residents were informed of the issues surround Civic Addressing and of the need to move forward and correct the identified issues.
The next step was to make the required changes to the Bylaw which authorized the system of civic addressing. To this end, and to ensure continuity of civic addressing through-out the Township, By-law 2017-883 was given final reading and adopted on September 18, 2017. To review Bylaw 2017-883, please refer to the category of "Roads" listed under the Documents Centre of the Township's Civic Web Portal.
As a comprehensive review and repair of the civic addressing system was going to have costs associated with it, the next step was to ensure there was funding available for this program. The program was discussed during the 2018 budget deliberations and at that time it was decided that such a program is likely to occur over an extended period of time. As a result, $17,000 was included in the 2018 budget to commence the program and to address those areas deemed to be a higher priority.
Since that time discussions between the Township, emergency service providers and the County of Lennox and Addington have been on-going and during the coming months, Staff will be reaching out to residents and advising them of changes that could effect their current civic address.
Program Summary
This Civic Addressing Program is intended to provide an improved system of civic addressing across the Township, and which will result in faster response times when emergency situations happen. During an emergency situation, persons are less likely to be able to provide a lengthy detailed description as to how to find the location of the emergency. A comprehensive system of civic addressing removes the worry from persons in this situation. This program will apply equally to properties accessed by water including island properties. Additionally, as a result of this program, service features such as water hydrants, water access points, beaches, parks and any point where people are like to congregate will be affixed with a civic address. Although there will be some inconveniences incurred by residents and others, we trust you will understand the need for this program.
Action Plan
A Detailed Action Plan has been developed to help Council, Staff and Residents to understand those actions that are required to initiate and see this program through to completion. Although this action plan has been given careful consideration, issues may arise during implementation which may result in amendments to this plan. See the Detailed Action Plan for a more complete understanding of this program.
Resident Reminder
A document has been developed which provides general information when residents, property owners and businesses will be required to update their address following a change in the road name and/or civic number. This Civic Address Reminder provides a list of potential contacts which that should prove useful to residents following the effective date of new Civic Addressing.
It is the responsibility of each land owner to ensure that the civic address assigned to your property is upright and clearly visible and un-obstructed by trees or snow banks. Please contact the Public Works Department if you have any questions respecting your civic address.