HomeMy Public PortalAbout11) 10B Direction regarding Curb Address MaintenanceAGENDA
ITEM 10.8 .
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
MEMORANDUM
DATE: February 21, 2017
TO: The Honorable City Council
FROM: Bryan Cook, City Manager
By : Mic hae l D. Forbes, Community Development Director
SUBJECT: DIRECTION REGARDING CURB ADDRESS MAINTENANCE
RECOMMENDATION:
The City Council is requested to provide direction to staff if the City should cease
mai ntenance of curb addresses and to so licit interest from nonprofit organizations to
repaint curb add resses as a public service or fund raiser .
BACKGROUND:
On January 27 , 2017 , the Facilities , Public Works , and In frastructure Ad Hoc Committee
discussed the City's ro le in maintaining curb addresses and the possibi li ty of a nonprofit
organization pe rformin g that function . The Ad Hoc Committee directed staff to bring the
matter to the full C ity Council for consideration.
ANALYSIS:
Property add resses painted on curbs are a common means of identifying properties .
While the Building Code and Fire Code require address numbers to be displayed on
buildings, curb addresses are not required by any code . Nonetheless, they are
sometimes used by emergency responders , delive ry companies , and ot hers to locate an
address from the street. Curb addresses typically need to be repain ted every few years
since they become damaged and faded over time .
The maintenance of curb addresses is handled differently in different cit ies . While some
cities assume the responsibili ty for repainting curb addresses, either on a regu lar
schedule o r individua lly upon request, many cities do not ma int ain curb addresses. In
cities that do not maintain curb addresses, it is common for nonprofit organizations to
City Council
February 21 , 2017
Page 2 of 3
repaint addresses , free of charge as a public serv ice , and seek donations from property
owners . It is recognized and assumed that not all property owners will donate . Requested
donations are typically around $15 or $20 .
Temple City has historically assumed responsibility for maintaining curb addresses . To
staffs recollection, it has been at least 10 years since the addresses were repainted
Citywide . Addresses were repainted in limited areas in conjunction with Neighborhood
Cleanup Days in 2014 , but addresses throughout the rest of the City are showing their
age . Public Works Maintenance staff have typ ic ally repainted missing or illegible curb
addresses when requested by property owners , but there is no established policy or
program to actively repaint addresses . The Fiscal Year (FY) 2016-2017 City Budget
includes an allocation of $10 ,000 for curb addressing , as it has for the past several years .
This amount would only be adequate to cover a small portion of the City, so the funds
have gone unspent in prior years . The handful of addresses that have been repainted by
request have been absorbed under the maintenance budget.
To get a cost estimate , staff included Citywide curb address repainting as an additiv e bid
item in the recent bid schedule for the FY 2016-2017 Pavement Rehabilitation Project.
The exact number of addresses in Temple City is unknown ; however there are
approximately 10 ,000 parcels in the City so that number was used as an estimate . The
unit price on the submitted bids ranged from $22 to $35 per address . Assum ing 10 ,000
addresses , the total cost would range from $220 ,000 to $350 ,000 . Curb pa inting is not an
eligible expense for gas tax , Measure R , or other transportation funds , so funds would
have to be allocated from the general fund .
In light of the substantial cost and inability to use transportation funds , staff requested
that the Ad Hoc Committee that the City cons id er allowing a nonprofit organization to
repaint addresses and solicit donations from residents , as is commonly done in other
communities . A nonprofit organization can complete the pa inting at a s ign ific antly lower
cost than a contractor hired by the City. For a variety of legal reasons , the City cannot
hire a nonprofit to perform the work , but can allow an organization to perform the work for
free as a public service and solicit donations . The organization would have to get a
business license and encroachment permit from the City, and would be required to carry
liability insurance .
When a nonprofit organization completes the work , there are sometimes complaints from
residents who do not want to be solicited , or do not want the ir address repainted because
they believe they are required to pay for it. If the City Council decides to pursue the
nonprofit approach , staff could use the City's various information channels (web site ,
social media , Weibo, etc.) to educate residents and let them know that donations are
voluntary and that they should not feel pressured to donate . Staff could also work with the
nonprofit organization through the City 's bus in ess license process to prevent sol icitors
from returning multiple times and to limit the frequency of curb painting so that one or
multiple organizations do not repaint the curbs more often than necessary just to seek
City Council
February 21 , 2017
Page 3 of 3
donations. A designated staff person could hand le any complaints received and work with
the nonprofit to resolve any issues .
There is no requirement to install or maintain curb addresses . In the event no nonprofit
organ izations were interested , property owners would not be required to maintain curb
addresses ; just as they are not required to do so now. However a property owner could
still choose to maintain the curb address in front of their property if desired .
STRATEGIC GOALS:
Allowing a nonprofit organizatio n to maintain curb addresses is consistent with the City
Strategic Goals of Public Health and Safety and Sustainable Infrastructure .
FISCAL IMPACT:
Allowing a nonprofit organization to repaint curb addresses would have no impact on the
FY 2016-2017 City Budget since the City would not pay for the service. The $10 ,000
allocation for curb addressing in the FY 2016-2017 City Budget would not be spent , and
the allocation would not be included in the proposed FY 2017-2018 C it y Budget.
ATTACHMENT:
None