What's Your Number? Campaign Kicks Off in Acton

In cooperation with the Town of Acton Fire and Police Departments, Eagle Scout candidate Jason Lucas of Boy Scout Troop 32 is launching What’s Your Number?, a public safety program to run September 1st - December 30th 2016 to raise awareness of proper house numbering in the Town of Acton. The purpose of this campaign is to educate homeowners on the importance of maintaining visible, unobstructed house numbers so first responders can find you quickly in an emergency.

Jason Lucas and Troop 32 Scouts will use various methods to raise awareness of proper numbering in town, including an informational webpage within the Town of Acton’s official website, which can be found at http://www.acton-ma.gov/HouseNumbers. The webpage contains information about the campaign and outlines the Town of Acton by-laws regulating house numbering. Jason has also created a Facebook page @actonhousenumbers that serves as an informal hub for homeowners to post photos of their newly improved numbers. Finally, scouts will set up booths at town events to hand out flyers and special discount coupons from Acton ACE Hardware for reduced-price house numbers.

Acton Emergency Services will work very closely with Jason Lucas and Troop 32 to assure the effectiveness of the campaign.

“The Acton Fire Department is grateful that Jason has taken on such an ambitious helpful project that will have a positive effect for our community. His project will also help first responders find the address they are responding to easier and quicker,” said Firefighter Brent Carter of Acton.
“In my research for this project I found out that the Town of Acton Emergency Services respond to over 25,000 calls every year, including rescue, medical emergencies, and fire,” said Jason Lucas. “It is extremely important that all homes are equipped with visible numbers, so that emergency services can locate houses more quickly in these time-sensitive situations. I’m very grateful to Acton Emergency Services for bringing this need to my attention, and for Acton ACE Hardware for their generous support.”

House Numbers are the Law
In Acton there are 8,474 housing units including approximately 5,000 one- and two-family homes. It is both town and state law that every house has a number. According to the Massachusetts Gen. Laws C. 148, S. 59: “Every building in the Commonwealth...shall have affixed thereto a number representing the address of such building.” The Town of Acton by-laws dictate the specifications of each number in Chapter E, Section 1, Clause (a): “The number shall be at least three (3) inches in height and shall be clearly visible from the street.”
Acton Public Safety recommends that homeowners apply numbers to their mailbox on both sides so that emergency responders can quickly find a house regardless of which direction they are traveling. This is doubly stressed when the driveway is long, such that the house is far away from the road. Also, house numbers should be block, numeric digits as opposed to text, and as close to the front door as possible.

For more information about the What’s Your Number? campaign, to download an Acton ACE Hardware discount coupon, or to request assistance, see http://www.acton-ma.gov/HouseNumbers or email acton.house.numbers@gmail.com.

[Pictured from left to right: Officer Jon Stackhouse, Eagle Scout Candidate Jason Lucas (Troop 32 Acton), and Firefighter Brent Carter. ]