Spring 2009
Spring is here and it's
time to get outside and clean up after the long winter.
Be nice to your neighbors
and sweep the sidewalk in front of your home.
While at the sidewalk,
look at your house. Can you clearly see and read your
house number?
Can the operator of a
police car, fire truck or ambulance see it if they were
in a hurry to get to your house?
Most people have no
idea how often we drive past a house that may be having
an emergency but there is no number on the houses in the
area and we have to go till we find one. That delay
could cost you or a loved one their life.
Brockton City Ordnance Code 1965, s23-28 Sec. 20-4,
Numbering of Buildings; states:
The
department of public works (City Engineering Dept.)
shall assign numbers to all
buildings erected or fronting on any public or private
way in the city, and shall have the power to determine
the form, size, and material of such numbers.
No
person shall neglect or refuse to affix to any building
owned by him the street number so designated for such
building, nor shall any person affix to or suffer to
remain on any building owned by him, for more than three
(3) days, a street number other than the one designated
for such building by the department.
Violation of this code is punishable by a fine of $50.00
per day for every day not in compliance
The City
Engineering Dept. states that they have not set any
specific regulation governing the form, size, or
material for such numbers.
The Department
however did state that the number must be affixed to the
front of the building, and that numbers mounted on
poles, over garages or otherwise, are not in
compliance.
A number of
suggestions to assist you in properly numbering your
building or home follows:
NUMBER SIZE
At least three
inch (3”) numbers should be used. Larger numbers may be
necessary depending on how far your building is from the
road.
NUMBERS
FORM
Plain block
numbers (163) are recommended for easy and fast
identification.
Spelling out the numbers such as (one hundreds and sixty
three) is acceptable by code but strongly not
recommended.
NUMBER
COLOR
Basic black
and white are recommended.
Which ever works best in contrast with the color of the
surface to which the numbers are mounted. Metal (brass)
numbers are not recommended. The reason being is that
though they may look nice during the daylight hours, at
night when a bright light is shined on them the glare
coming off them makes it
nearly impossible to read.
NUMBER
LOCATION
On many older
homes the number is affix to the center stile of the
front door.
This is fine, just be sure you don't paint over it of
conceal it behind a storm door.
We suggest
placing the number on the outside wall right next to the
front door on which ever side of the door the door
handle is located.
Again, these
are only recommendations and as long as the building is
numbered it is in compliance with the city code
regulating this matter.
Requests for
further information or assistance please contact:
Officer Al
Gazerro
Brockton
Police Dept
Community
education Unit
(508)
897-5374
agazerro@brocktonpolice.com

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