Resident urges county to fix addressing and mapping to support rentals and emergency response

A Lee County resident told the Fiscal Court that missing or unreliable physical addresses in parts of Indian Valley are preventing residents from obtaining internet service, listing short-term rentals online and directing emergency responders.

Roger Orkin, who said he works for the Johnson County sheriff’s department and owns a second home in Lee County, described repeated problems getting a Google Maps–compatible address for short-term rental properties. Orkin said the lack of a map-friendly address cost him about $200 on a special internet offer, has caused rental cancellations and prompted frustrated callers who cannot find remote properties.

Why it matters: Physical addressing affects public safety, commerce and tourism-tax collections; without reliable addresses, residents and visitors may be delayed and the county may not collect tourism tax tied to short-term rentals.

Orkin told the court he had discussed the issue with the county’s 9-1-1 director and with a staff member named Jacob (last name not stated), and he volunteered to help pin properties for submission to mapping services. He said some addresses that had been created were not routing correctly in Google Maps and had sent visitors to the wrong houses.

A court member told Orkin, “I’ll talk to Jake. We’ll get behind that,” and asked for Orkin’s contact information; court staff confirmed they had it. The court did not adopt a formal policy during the meeting but committed to follow up: staff will re-engage with Orkin and with the county addressing contact to attempt to resolve the mapping entries and the 9-1-1 addressing records.

The resident also raised the downstream effects on tourism-tax revenue when short-term rentals cannot be booked because guests cannot locate properties; the court noted the concern and agreed to pursue the technical fixes needed for addressing and mapping.