On April 1st, I emailed and delivered letters to the county and our three towns here within Kings County.
“With over 60,000 people living in Kings County and that number climbing each month, I believe it’s crucial to have your help with bringing awareness to this topic.
I am looking to work with the Municipality of The County of Kings along with the Town of Kentville, Town of Berwick and Town of Wolfville to get this important topic to the doorsteps of property owners across the County.
I feel it is part of the towns and county’s responsibility to help educate property owners about such crucial signs in our communities.”
The reasoning for sending these letters was to help enforce my civic sign initiative and to get the message to the doorstep of residents, which I started working on in late December.
Little do many know but civic addressing, enforcement and education are all duties that fall under the jurisdiction of those who assign them.
In this case, here in Kings, the towns assign civic numbers to those who reside in town, while the county has jurisdiction over everything else besides DND property and reservations.
In my opinion, and in all reality, they are responsible for ensuring the public has these signs displayed so emergency first responders and many other essential services can easily locate residential and commercial properties.
Since the letters were delivered, I’ve had the courtesy of hearing back from the Municipality of the County of Kings and the Town of Wolfville.
The Town of Wolfville was working to get letters out to those who didn’t have signs displayed within their area and were following up at a later date and willing to help and assist where needed.
At the last committee of the whole meeting for the county, discussions about having letters sent out in tax bills were made by Councilor Best and the potential for funding for those who don’t have them was brought forward by Deputy Mayor Peckford. These discussions are expected to be brought back at next month’s meeting.
The Municipality, Town of Wolfville and Town of Kentville all have bylaws in place which could result in fines if signs are not displayed.
From my understanding, the Town of Berwick does not have a bylaw in place at this time for civic addressing.
Other counties in different areas have found ways to end the problem, but catching up with those who don’t currently have one is the hardest part.
Civic signs should be installed during the construction phase of any build. There are many instances where first responders attend new builds for medical emergencies and even fires.
Some counties have enforcement to ensure signs are displayed during the construction phase.
Outside the valley, some counties also require you to have a civic sign displayed before getting your occupancy permit.
My letter outlined the importance of having signs displayed and how these jurisdictions play a role in educating residents.
Social media only goes so far and having letters delivered to those who reside within their areas gets to those who don’t have the means of the World Wide Web.
I am looking forward to seeing some additional improvements.
There has been an increase in signs since my canvassing in February, but unfortunately, there is still a huge gap across Kings County and all the Annapolis Valley where they are lacking.
From my experience, subdivisions have been the worst for having a civic sign displayed.
I’ve visited a handful over the past few months, first hand, and there are absolutely zero in some places, including two in the Kentville and North Kentville locations and areas in the Town of Berwick.
Remember if your number is on the house, and it’s white like the colour of your home, are first responders going to find you in the dark? Your sign should be visible before approaching, so first responders don’t pass it.
⚠️ RECOMMENDATION: Civic signs should be blue and reflective material so they can be seen during the day and night. They should be in an elevated position, placed at the end of your driveway and facing all directions of travel.
You can visit your municipal or town websites for a list of suppliers who provide civic signs and their bylaws.
Adrian J.
