Lieutenant Governor’s street-addressing initiative outlines MARS database, $5.3M CDBG funding and signage plan; Saint John ahead as pilot completion

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor briefed the Committee on Disaster Recovery, Infrastructure and Planning on the territory‑wide Street Addressing Initiative (SAI), detailing the master address repository (MARS), funding sources, a signage program and next steps to connect the U.S. Virgin Islands to federal and commercial address databases.

The SAI, project manager and Geospatial Information Systems Administrator Christopher George told the committee, is designed to create a nationally standardized addressing system tailored to Virgin Islands culture and estate naming conventions, produce street-name signage across the territory and drive public awareness and use. "Street addressing or lack thereof can affect the quality of services in many aspects of our lives, from emergency services to food delivery, from utilities to postal mail," George told the committee.

Project status and technical milestones

George said the office has completed the master address repository and that the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) have accepted the SAI's framework. The SAI has already created thousands of addresses in previous pilot and bridge phases and is executing a territory-wide phase funded principally by a $5.3 million Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) awarded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and managed through the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority.

The project purchased a Trimble MX50 mobile mapping unit ($347,705) and set up procedures to link each address to parcel data and GPS coordinates in the MARS. The office is working with the University of the Virgin Islands for fieldwork; UVI has been paid for work completed and is an active implementation partner.

Signage and public rollout

The SAI has secured $2.3 million for street signage (highway-illuminated signs and residential street-name signs). George said illuminated highway signs have been installed at major intersections on Saint Thomas; Saint John will receive its residential signs first, with a contract being executed and a groundbreaking expected in August. Saint Croix signage procurement had been delayed but the office reported it had identified a capable local vendor and was moving to installation.

Emergency dispatch and agency integration

The MARS is being set up to provide live, real-time address data to stakeholders, including the Territory's e911 system, the Police Department, Fire and Emergency Services, Waste Management, WAPA, the U.S. Postal Service and other federal and local partners. George said an e911 test using street addresses has been completed at dispatch and the last step is an in-vehicle/field test at residences once partner agency equipment is ready.

Public outreach and naming protocols

The SAI team emphasized the community-driven "name your road" process. The office provides a community road-naming protocol and working with homeowners’ associations, neighborhood groups and community councils to gather signed consensus (51% of property owners on a road is the standard used) before a name is adopted. The project team said Saint John was already the first U.S. Caribbean island with a fully functioning end-to-end address system and will be used as the demonstration for territory-wide rollout.

Costs, timeline and next steps

Project manager George told the committee the SAI expects to complete the addressing work by January 2026; signage manufacturing and installation likely will continue into spring 2026. The total cost for the territory-wide phase is $5,300,000 in CDBG funding; earlier phases were funded by grants and the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. The office intends to provide a formal closeout report and requested committee support for related implementing legislation and agency coordination to ensure agencies adopt the MARS once the territory formally proclaims the address system complete.