Rocky Point’s Private Roads

Private Road Sign

There are five marked private roads in the 2-mile stretch from where Rocky Point Road angles off from Marine Drive to its dead end on a high bluff overlooking Dyes Inlet. That doesn’t include the dozen city and county roads it also spawns. While 17 cross streets may seem ample for pinpointing addresses in the area, many of the numerous unmarked shared driveways along Rocky Point Road might also qualify for (and perhaps benefit from) private road status.

So should more groups of neighbors opt for a private road sign? Kitsap County rules for private roads are simple and straightforward (see end of post). You don’t even need to install the sign yourself—for a fee, Public Works will do it for you. One downside of switching to a private road is that your address will change. When I moved a couple of years ago, I lost count of the change-of-address notifications I sent out after about 30. Ironically one of the last groups to update their records (after three or four notifications) was the county itself.

What then is the motivation? Judging by the names they have chosen, people who live on private roads don’t seem to have vanity in mind. One of my favorites is Sparrow Way. Instead the goal seems to be a desire to mark their territory. Or perhaps a concern to make it easier for others to locate their homes, although the Internet mapping sites and printed atlases didn’t find every private road I searched for in my quick survey. However, the names are used locally. During my bike rides I have been asked several times “Where’s Sparrow Way?”

A year ago when the Mud Cat disappeared on a two-day walkabout I stuffed area mailboxes with a lost cat flyer. The quantity of mailboxes with poor or no identification (names or numbers) led me to conclude that a significant subset of people don’t want to make it easier to find their address. Their thinking must be (assuming they think about it at all) that they can find their house, their friends can find it, and anyone else will need to do a little work. Pros like the UPS drivers and mail carriers can find just about anything, but what happens in an emergency situation like a 911 call or a pizza delivery when mailboxes and houses aren’t well marked?

I have never asked my neighbors about getting a private road sign. They aren’t recluses but probably think our homes are easy enough to find already. If I ever propose that we get one, I’m holding out for Mud Bay Way.

For a $120 fee, Public Works will manufacture and install private road signs where they intersect with a County maintained road. All private road signs requests must be first verified with the County addressing staff (Community Development). Upon receipt of the fee, the County will manufacture, install and maintain it in perpetuity as long as it remains in the County’s jurisdiction.

Private road name signs may also be purchased and installed by private sources. The signs must comply with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and be installed in compliance with roadside safety guidelines.

A private road intersecting with another private road is not under Kitsap County’s jurisdiction. Street name signs for these locations must be purchased and installed by private providers.