The territory is getting closer to adopting a uniform street addressing system, Lieutenant Governor Gregory Francis announced last week.
The Street Addressing Initiative is nearing completion of the pilot projects, which kicked off several months ago across the Virgin Islands.
About 1,500 parcels throughout Mon Bijou on St. Croix, downtown Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas and Cruz Bay, St. John have now received new addresses which include a number and a street name, according to the Lt. Governor’s office.
Street signs must be installed and new house numbers placed on the homes in the pilot areas before the pilot projects are considered complete. Upon completion of the pilot projects, the Lt. Governor’s Office will be positioned to move towards its goal of implementing addressing throughout the territory.
Information gained from the pilot process will be valuable as the project proceeds, explained Francis.
“Conducting the pilot projects has not only confirmed the community’s overall receptiveness to addressing in the territory, but also clarified the level of human and financial resources that will be needed to complete a territory-wide initiative of this magnitude,” Francis said.
Address implementation involves deploying field crews to distribute new address packets, the installation of street signs, and the creation of a Master Addressing database that is accessible by all agencies that rely on addressing data to perform their daily operations.
Transitioning the territory to a logical and standardized addressing system is projected to cost about $2.5 million dollars and could take up to two years, based on the availability of resources, according to the Lt. Governor’s Office.
Francis’ office continues to aggressively explore various opportunities to secure funding for the project, he added.
The Lt. Governor’s Office appreciates the input of all stakeholders and residents who have helped the Street Addressing Initiative to reach this point, Francis explained.
“We appreciate the input from all of the residents who have worked together to submit street name recommendations for their communities, particularly since street addressing cannot take place on unnamed roadways,” he said.
Virgin Islands residents are reminded to submit their street name recommendations to the Office of the Lt. Governor.
Representatives of the project team are also available to meet with neighborhood associations to discuss the Street Addressing Initiative. For more information or to set up a presentation, contact GIS Coordinator/SAI Project Manager Chris George at (340)776-8505 x 4321 or email vistreets@lgo-vi.gov.
