Guess when Shelter Island Chief of Police Jim Read wrote this plea:

“Many homes do not display their street address or the owners assume that the police know where you live. This poses a problem during times of emergency, as vital minutes can be lost while trying to locate the proper residence.  Please display your street number so it is clearly visible from the road. Numerals, letters or script may be used and should be no less than three inches in height, according to section 133-27 of the town code.  If you assume that emergency personnel will automatically know where you live, you are making a mistake that could be costly during a critical emergency.”

The issue should be familiar to recent readers. The Fire Department issued a similar reminder a couple of weeks ago. It followed Chief Read’s request by about five and a half years. He wrote his request in a column that appeared in the Reporter on April 21, 2005.

Take a drive around the Island and note how many houses you pass that don’t appear to have numbers. If emergency responders can’t see the numbers, how can they answer a 911call without wasting time finding the right address?

As Fire Chief Dan Rasmussen said in a public announcement recently, the lack of house numbers remains a problem on the Island. “This year we have had a number of calls where there was difficulty finding the house quickly due to the lack of a house number,” he wrote in a message about National Fire Prevention Week earlier this month. “State and town law require that all homes and businesses be clearly identified from the road by a number,” he noted.

The requirement for house numbers is in the town’s zoning code, violations of which could mean a fine of $200 to $1,000 or by imprisonment for up to six months or both. Repeat violations could mean a fine of from $1,500 to  $4,000 plus the six-month maximum jail time.

“All parcels of land which are improved on or which improvements are under construction shall display the number of the street on which they are located as designated by the Town Assessor’s office.” So it says in Chapter 133-27 of the code.

“Existing and completed buildings shall have street numbers permanently displayed so that they are clearly visible from the street.” They must be “no less than three inches in height.”

The town should warn people to get those numbers up or face fines. Government intervention is not the favored solution but sometimes it’s the only way to serve the public interest. If Shelter Island lacks the will or the resources to enforce a very simple and important section of its own town code, that’s a problem.