Comprehensive Street Naming and Addressing Systems

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Street names and addresses serve as everyday wayfinding devices in our surroundings, often unnoticed, while casually contributing to ambience and the symbolic meaning of a place. At first glance, the naming of streets and numbering of addresses may seem like a simple and mundane task. On the contrary, assigning street nomenclature and addresses is a defining part of a community's identity.

Street naming and addressing systems can reveal our organized way of life and power structures. On a fundamental level, these systems reflect and embody our core civic and democratic values. On a more practical level, these systems are critical for navigating and understanding a place, city, or region. And, in terms of information management, the concept of assigning addresses and street names is becoming more complex and sophisticated.

This issue of Zoning Practice explores the core components of a comprehensive street naming and property numbering system. It begins with a brief examination of the varied roles these systems play in urban and regional management and a short history of the evolution of street naming and property numbering in the U.S. Then it offers considerations for contemporary systems, in light of evolving values within the planning field.

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