Addressing

Posted addresses on buildings are a critical piece of information for a variety of purposes from emergency response to parcel delivery. They are used not only to find a particular building, but to orient oneself on a street. To that end, an address number must be posted in a way that is clearly visible from the street. It is the property owner's responsibility to post the assigned address number on their house in compliance with City Ordinances (GRO Ch. 12, Sec. 9). Failure to comply may result in being cited/fined by the Worcester Fire Department.

Material/Color/Size

There are no universal rules regarding color, material, and size. Rather, the number's color should contrast with the material of the structure is posted on so that it is visible from the street. If contrasting colors cannot be found, placing numbers on a placard of a contrasting background would be ideal. Generally, numbers that are 3 to 4 inches in size are acceptable. Do not use numbers with backlights.

Posted Address Location

The address number must be posted on the side of the house that faces the street. You may also post the address elsewhere on the house, but it must be on the street facing side of the house.

Address Posting When Building is not Visible from Street

If the house is not visible from the street, then the address number should be placed on a prominent visible object that is visible from the street. Options include posting your address on your mailbox, a sign post, or landscaping boulders as long as the numbers are prominently visible (3-4 inches in size at least).

Unit Numbers

Unit numbers should be posted but do not need to be as prominent. Generally, just posting the unit numbers on unit mailboxes and primary entrances to units is sufficient.

Multiple Address Numbers on a Single Property

If a building has multiple address numbers assigned to it, each of them must be posted on the street facing side of the building. If a parcel has multiple buildings and not all of them are visible from the road, then they must be placed on an object visible from the street.

City of Worcester Unit Numbering Specifications

• All levels of a building should be addressed in the same way, and within a complex, to the degree possible, all numbering should be oriented in the same way (with low numbers at the same end of each building, preferably at the end of the building closest to the front entrance to the complex).
• Only numbers may be used as the identifier, i.e. unit A is not acceptable, but Unit 1 is. If the building is part of a complex where multiple buildings use a single mailroom, a letter suffix can be added to the unit number to denote the building. For example Unit 101A.
• Even unit numbers should be on the right side and odd on the left side of the hall as you face in the direction in which the numbers increase.
• It is preferential that numbers increase in a clockwise manner if applicable, with even units on the right and odd on the left when facing the direction they are increasing. Otherwise increase from one end of hall (use a consistent starting point per floor).
• For buildings without an interior hall, unit numbers should be consecutive (101, 102, 103) and run from one end of the building to the other.
• Basement units should be two digits xx (i.e., unit 11-99) and then each floor should increase by 100. For example, the lowest number on each floor should be: 11 in the basement level, 101 on the 1st floor, 201 on the 2nd floor, 301 on the 3rd floor, etc.
• All rooms including rest rooms, utility closets, laundries, storage rooms, electrical closets, break rooms, etc. require unique numbers (rooms within numbered rooms do not need numbers). If residential rooms have an identifier of “unit” other rooms can use different identifiers like “room”, “suite”, “apartment”, “office”, “space” to differentiate them.

City of Worcester's Street Naming Guidelines

All new street names or private streets transitioning to public streets in the City of Worcester are required to conform to the following guidelines or rules in order to ensure clarity and improve public safety and convenience. City of Worcester reserves the right to change the post type (st, ave, wy, etc) of the suggested street name.

1. Street names shall not contain more than 30 characters, including the abbreviated directional (if any) and abbreviated street type.
2. No street name shall have less than 3 characters. Note: Existing streets that consist of less than 3 characters may remain.
3. Street names that contain punctuation or special characters including apostrophes, commas, hyphens, periods, or other similar characters, are discouraged due to implications with the 911 CAD system. Existing punctuation may remain.
4. Street names shall not exceed two words, excluding the directional and street type. Note: Existing street names with more than two words may remain.
5. Street names shall not contain directional words or street type words. Note: Existing streets that consist of these words may remain.
6. New street names shall not duplicate any existing street name in the City of Worcester. The street name, for purposes of evaluating whether a duplicate exists, does not include the street type. For example, Aspen Lane and Aspen Drive are duplicates under this definition. North Main Street and South Main Street are considered a single road with directionals. Names that are merely minor spelling variations of the same word are also prohibited, such as “Ashley” and “Ashlee”. Please refer to the list of existing street names: Street Listing.
7. New street names that sound like an existing street name, or another proposed name, or that create difficulties in pronunciation are prohibited. For example, Bear Street and Bare Street are duplicates under this definition.
8. Street names using a brand name for a company or specific product or fictional character are strongly discouraged. Note: Existing street names named in such a manner may remain.
9. Street names that are deemed offensive, obscene, lewd, profane, offensive, or derogatory of any class, race, religion, ethnic group, gender, age, or other group are prohibited. An obscene term is a word or phrase that refers to or describes sexual conduct as defined by MGL c.272, s.31.
10. The use of a person's name for a street is permitted only if the person has been deceased for a minimum of 5 years, and shall have been a person of local historical, cultural, or social importance, and made significant contributions to the City of Worcester, State of Massachusetts, or the United States. Such names should preferably not include titles (Dr., Mr., Ms., etc.), or middle initials. Biographical information must be submitted in support of such naming. When naming a street for an individual, consideration should be given to putting the name only on a major thoroughfare rather than a residential street.
11. Street names shall not contain numerals. For example, Second Street is not permitted to be named as "2nd Street", where the official name is "2nd."
12. Spelling of words in street names shall conform to the spelling found in standard dictionaries of the English language, US usage. Words that are taken from a foreign language, or that are difficult to spell or pronounce shall be discouraged.
13. Street names should not use non-standard spelling (such as “Olde” for “Old”). Note: Existing street names containing these types of words may remain.
14. The words "Old", "New", "Extension" should not be used to designate a section of road unless the section so designated runs parallel or near a road with the same name and is connected to the road of the same name.
15. In selecting names for streets or in renaming streets, consideration should be given to the use of names that are historically, culturally, or environmentally significant to the immediate area.
16. Street names shall be consistent as the street crosses municipal boundaries to the greatest extent possible.