Title
Ordinance establishing a standard street address system for unincorporated areas of Lake County.
Staff Summary
• The County Board adopted an address standard ordinance on July 12, 1977 and mandated its use for official tax records.
• Exemptions were granted for mailing addresses to several homeowners' associations that objected to these changes.
• Based on that decision these properties have two addresses (dual addressing).
• Dual addressing poses issues for public safety, mail delivery, navigation systems, along with other business transactions.
• The 1977 address ordinance will be replaced with the Ordinance establishing a standard street address system for unincorporated areas of Lake County.
• The statewide implementation of the Next Generation 9-1-1 system by July 1, 2020 will rely on a single address.
• The ordinance will allow the adoption of a local addressing system so long as it meets the criteria outlined in the ordinance.
• The ordinance also has an enforcement component, something that is lacking in the 1977 address ordinance.
Body
ORDINANCE
WHEREAS, the Lake County Board is responsible for assigning addresses and naming streets in unincorporated areas under Illinois Compiled Statutes, 55 ILCS 5/5-1067; and,
WHEREAS, the County Board enacted an ordinance establishing an address standard for unincorporated Lake County on July 12, 1977 (Agenda Item #53); and,
WHEREAS, several homeowners' associations were allowed to retain nonconforming addresses; and,
WHEREAS, a pattern of inconsistent addresses has grown over the subsequent 42 years in some of these areas making it difficult for emergency vehicles to locate a house when responding to a call for assistance; and,
WHEREAS, The Regional 9-1-1 Consolidation Planning Project Committee along with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Lake County Fire Chief’s Association, Lake County Chiefs of Police Association and the Northeast Illinois Telecommunicators Association have requested that these addressing issues be resolved by the County in order to minimize the time required to locate an address when responding to an emergency call; and,
WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has mandated the implementation of the Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) system by July 1st, 2020 and that system relies on a single address for proper emergency call routing; and,
WHEREAS, this County Board has been further advised by these public safety agencies that response time for severe health problems such as heart attacks and strokes can make the difference between life and death, and the time taken to respond to all emergency calls has already been lengthened in many parts of Lake County due to increasing traffic congestion; and,
WHEREAS, the U.S. Postal Service has requested that the County implement consistent addresses in unincorporated areas to improve its ability to accurately deliver mail to these areas, and will provide a one year grace period during which it will continue to deliver mail to both addresses, so that affected residents have ample time to complete address change notifications if need be; and,
WHEREAS, the unincorporated area of the County continues to decrease and fragment, causing addressing irregularities through proximity to incorporated areas with different addressing standards; and,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED the July 12, 1977 address ordinance is repealed.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED by the County Board of the County of Lake, Illinois, as follows:
Section 1. Official Address
1. Official Address: Every parcel of land in unincorporated Lake County shall have an official site address. For improved parcels, the official address is to be posted at the access to the property in a prominent location visible from the street.
a. Standard Numbering System: The official address shall follow the Standard Street Address System unless the conditions of subparagraph b, below, apply. The addressing system is based on a uniform grid pattern with its origin beginning at State Street and Madison Street in Chicago. The addressing numbers increase as they go west and north from that point. The grid number represents the number of miles west or north from the base street plus an address number. Lake County's beginning reference point is at the southwest corner of the county, being 20 miles north of Madison Street and 29 miles west of State Street in Chicago. Address numbers with a north directional are assigned even on the west side and odd on the east side of a street. Address numbers with a west directional are assigned even on the north side and odd on the south side of a street. Lake County does not contain any south or east addresses under this system.
b. Local Standard Numbering System: If an area is found to have consistent and logical but non-conforming addresses, the addresses in use in that area may be adopted as the standard for that area. The finding of consistency would require that the addresses in use assign odd and even addresses to opposite sides of a street, that addresses ascend in an orderly manner along the street, and that the addresses are not duplicated in the surrounding areas. Adopting the addresses in use in such an area as the County standard would be made in consultation with the fire district providing service to the area and the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
2. Renumbering Required: Renumbering will be required if an existing unincorporated parcel has an address that is not consistent with the Standard Street Address System or if the fire protection district, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office or the U.S. Postal Service request assignment of a new address. The Lake County Chief County Assessment Office shall issue a new official address using the provisions of paragraph 1, above.
Section 2. Administration
1. Assignment of Address: The assignment of addresses and determination of consistency in unincorporated areas shall be the responsibility of the Lake County Chief County Assessment Office.
2. Official Address Record: The Lake County property tax records system shall be the official record of addresses for parcels in unincorporated Lake County. The Lake County Chief County Assessment Office shall maintain and update the official addresses in this system.
3. Notice of New Address: If an address is found to be inconsistent with the provisions of Section 1 and will be renumbered, the property owner of record, as identified in the Lake County property tax records system, shall be given written notice of the new address. The property owner shall have 90 days from the date of the letter to become compliant with the newly assigned address. Failure to do so will subject the property owner to the enforcement provisions of this Ordinance.
Section 3. Enforcement
1. Enforcement Officer: This Ordinance shall be jointly enforced by the Lake County Planning, Building & Development Department and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
2. Warning: The Enforcement Officer shall issue a Warning of Ordinance Violation when the owner of the property has been given notice of a new address and has not properly posted the new address. The Warning shall require the violator to abate the violation(s) within no less than seven (7) days, and shall state that a Notice of Ordinance Violation may be issued if the Warning is not adhered to as specified.
3. Notice of Ordinance Violation: If the owner of the property has previously been issued a Warning of Ordinance Violation and fails to abate the violation by the date specified in the Warning the Enforcement Officer shall have authority to issue a Notice of Ordinance Violation. If Administrative Adjudication is found to be the appropriate remedy to resolve the violation, the Notice must be served in accordance with and shall contain all information specified and required in the Lake County Administrative Adjudication Ordinance (§§ 94.50 through 94.66). Prior to the hearing date documented on the Notice of Ordinance Violation, the Respondent may elect to cease the violation for which the Notice of Ordinance Violation was issued, pay the fine listed on the Notice of Ordinance Violation, and not participate in the hearing.
4. Penalty: Any person violating this chapter shall be subject to the penalty as prescribed in § 10.99
DATED at Waukegan, Lake County, Illinois on this 9th day of July, A.D. 2019.