County looking at renaming Aiken roads 6/8/2009 12:03 AM
By HALEY HUGHES Staff writer
Jack Ginnery and Kelly Hagens-Swart both live on Senn Street, but they don't live on the same street.
Ginnery's Senn Street is in Graniteville, while Hagens-Swart's home is on Senn Street in Vaucluse. Throughout the county, there are dozens of examples of the same or similarly named streets, often in the same fire district, which can be problematic for emergency responders.
Imagine the confusion of a dispatcher or fire crew trying to determine whether the call is at Valley View Court or Valley View Street. How about Cherry Lane or Cherry Street? Willis Circle or Willis Road? Short Drive or Short Street? And the list goes on.
Aiken County officials are looking at renaming some roads to eliminate confusion. In the case of Senn Street, the proposed name change would be in Graniteville, to Rookie Way.
Ginnery said he will not be bothered by the change if and when it comes.
Hagens-Swart said it is best the County is seeking to rename the Graniteville street because it is a "small dirt road on the wrong side of town."
She has lived on Senn Street in Vaucluse her entire life and does not want its history wiped clean with a name change.
"That would be absolutely ludicrous," she said. "County Council needs to look for another hobby."
Changing streets in the same fire district with the same or similar names is necessary to ensure emergency responders get to the location the 911 call originated from as soon as possible, County officials said.
"We want to make it as quick and easy for emergency services to get to your house," said Stephen Strohminger, director of County Planning and Development.
Cathy Randall, County E911 and Geographic Information System coordinator, echoed Strohminger's sentiments.
"When you're out running code, the very thing you don't need to be doing is running up and down the road three or four times," she said. "All we're trying to do is help people in a timely manner. The fire departments know their areas pretty well, but EMS workers these days don't live here, and they don't know."
The Aiken County E911 Division is responsible for assigning addresses to all occupied property in Aiken County.
Often, EMS workers notify E911 of duplicate road names. And spotting them happens more times than not, said EMS Coordinator Harvey Jay.
In the 1990s, the state of South Carolina gave local governments the power to standardize addressing for the E911 system. Included in that law are criteria that new street names must not duplicate or be similar to an existing street name in the local government's geographic area, and existing duplicate street names must be changed as necessary by the local government to ensure efficiency of the emergency response system.
The cities of Aiken and North Augusta also handle street names and addressing through the County's E911 system.
Typically, officials will propose changing the name of the street with the least amount of addresses.
"We try to minimize the impact," Strohminger said. "We send all tax parcel owners letters when the proposed change is up, and ask they please contact us to give their feedback. I understand to a degree (that people don't like change)."
The County will also take into account how long the road has been there, and the history behind its name.
Letters will also be sent to the U.S. Postal Service notifying it of the change. The Postal Service will forward mail to the new address for six months.
Despite complaints that may arise if a road name is changed, the County maintains it is for the common good.
"No one wants to change their road name, but someone has to make it safer," County Councilwoman LaWana McKenzie said recently.
Breakout info
Willis Circle and Willis Road
Camelia Drive and Camelia Street
Dallas Drive and Dallas Circle
Washington Avenue, Washington Circle, Washington Drive
Sizemore Avenue, Sizemore Circle, Sizemore Road
Birch Circle and Birch Road
Dorr Drive and Dorr Street
McKenzie Circle, McKenzie Court, McKenzie Place, McKenzie Street
Oakdale Avenue and Oakdale Drive
Aiken Road and Aiken Street
Pineview Circle and Pineview Drive
Walnut Court and Walnut Lane
Central Street and Central Avenue
Taylor Drive, Taylor Lane, Taylor Street
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Posted by: Previous resident On: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 3:22 PM
Comment Title: road signs
Thanks for the link but when I lived there and was notified by the 911 system of the address change (twice in 12 months), I did not feel like it was my responsibility to see to it the road signs got changed. As another poster mentioned, I had to update all of my contact information at banks, for bills, and at DMV, etc. My point was there needs to be follow through if road names are changed. I no longer live on this road (or Ext.).
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Posted by: HC On: Monday, June 08, 2009 9:35 PM
Comment Title: bad idea
It just sucks my road has been renamed for a year now and UPS, FEDEX, and any GPS still can't find my home. I can't have anything delivered that has to come ground shipping, and police and ambulances can't find my house unless I give them my old address. I think renaming mine was unnecessary considering there is no way to get my old address confused with any other street in all of Aiken.
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Posted by: On: Monday, June 08, 2009 6:05 PM
Comment Title: need a life
Wah, wah, gripe, gripe. Ummm. You through whining yet?
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Posted by: John Lowery, Aiken Standard internet content editor On: Monday, June 08, 2009 4:12 PM
Comment Title: Correction on link
Poster Patrick Swayze has posted a link to a useful service on the Aiken County Government website. Unfortunately, the link isn't quite correct. Here is the actual link: http://cxap2.aikencountysc.gov/atyourrequest/home.do . Thanks, Patrick, for taking an interest in this issue and pointing our readers to a useful resource!
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Posted by: On: Monday, June 08, 2009 4:05 PM
Comment Title: need a life
If the county so chooses to name dirt roads and make residents go thru the hassle and expense of changing all of their personal information and contracts not to mention the expense of relettering mailboxes and checkbooks ect. they need to spend the money to upkeep the said roads they are worried about. Or learn to leave people alone. changing a road name means residents get the brunt end of the b.s. I have a cdl license and the red tape beind trying to keep one in the terrorist age is enough to piss a person off enough to go postal without the bs of having the county adding more insult to the injury. Think before you make a change that effects peoples lives.
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Posted by: Patrcik Swayze On: Monday, June 08, 2009 3:55 PM
Comment Title: Sign Requests
If you need a sign fixed go to the county web site: http://www.aikencountysc.gov/atyourrequest/
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Posted by: Previous resident On: Monday, June 08, 2009 12:52 PM
Comment Title: Correct road signs too
I used to live on Ergle Street Ext in Granoteville. We were notified the street name was changed to Ergle Street. The Ergle Street Ext street sign is still on the corner of that road. Be sure to update the road signs when you update the street names.
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Posted by: On: Monday, June 08, 2009 12:47 PM
Comment Title:
Kelly Hagans-Swarts lives on the good side of the road?
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Posted by: On: Monday, June 08, 2009 9:42 AM
Comment Title: Road name changes
add to list Oakwood Drive, Graniteville and Oakwood Drive, Aiken. or Shilo Road and Shiloh Church Road. First, after living in the same residence for over 20 years, it was decided that I had an odd numbered house on the even side of the street. A change was made. Then it was told that there were no house numbers less than 100 so I was given a new house number in the 100s. Guess what....I now have an even numbered house in the 100s on the odd side of the street again. This all took place in less than 12 months. NOw we tackling the street names! Don't we have more urgent things to do
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Posted by: Hobby Horse On: Monday, June 08, 2009 8:10 AM
Comment Title: Just For Fun
I for one am glad Aiken County has such an exciting "hobby." But, by renaming all the roads, they are taking all the fun away from emergency responders who go on a call at 3 am, and get to play which Church St are you really on. It must be a blast! Especially when you have a timer running (heart attack, choking victim, Fire, CDV..). But that's ok, cause, "Everybody knows where I live!" If not, they will when they read about you in the papers, under the title, "Confusing Road Name Cause Local Death." So watch out you don't fall from your "High Horse," EMS might not beable to find you.
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Posted by: dick robbins On: Monday, June 08, 2009 1:16 AM
Comment Title: got one better for u
how about look at all the roads named church in the county of aiken. let me help u there are nine and the dispatchers never get it right can u blame them other states dont tell u that ur road name is changed until its already arranged quit griping a road is pavement or ashpalt or in aiken county maybe still dirt.
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