How Does this Affect You?

For all addresses on Key Peninsula, Anderson Island, and Fox Island, your directional will change. For about 375 properties, a new address may be necessary to make sure emergency services can find your property.

If you have questions or concerns about the address that has been assigned to you, please contact us at (253) 798-8575 or pcpalsaddressing@co.pierce.wa.us.

When will these changes happen?

This change will go into effect April 1, 2018. Property owners will receive a mailing with their new address in March 2018. Below is a timeline of the address change process. 

Why are the Changes Necessary? 

Pierce County is updating addressing to come into compliance with Next Generation 911. Next Generation 911 will update the existing 911 infrastructure from a phone system that only accepts calls to an Internet-based system that will allow voice calls, photos, video, and text messages.

The current 911 system was created in the 1970s and is not compatible with today's technology. Consistent standards for addressing need to be implemented across the state and nation to allow 911 systems to be upgraded. The recommended address standard is the USPS standard, which requires directionals to be points on a compass (i.e. N, NW, NE, S, SW, SE, etc.). The directionals used on Key Peninsula (KPN and KPS), Fox Island (FI), and Anderson Island (AI), do not meet these standards. 

Benefits of a new 911 system:

• Increases safety for first responders and residents.
• Helps 9-1-1 responders identify the exact location of an incident more efficiently.
• Protects people reporting emergency situations by offering a way to report an emergency while staying silent.
• Protects first responders by giving them more information about active emergency scenes through texts, videos, and photos.
• Prevents call center outages by dispatching messages to more call centers.