STREET NAME CAUSES CONFUSION

Bye, East Pecan St.

The county is changing the name of the street, residents are not happy

Residents of East Pecan have been given a number of choices for a new name for the street.

They got a letter posted on their door last month from the county saying the name of the street was “easily confused with other street names in the same response area” for 911 and emergency service personnel.

Ken and Jeanie Crum are concerned about problems because of having to reapply to Medicare and Social Security.

A couple of blocks away is Pecan Street.

The letter from the county asked what new street name they preferred and offered choices of Blackjack Drive, Sweetbay Trail, and Arrowwood Avenue. But the Crums want to keep it as East Pecan Street. They just got their tag and driver licenses straightened out. It took 90 days to get Medicare and Social Security straightened out with the new address – and now they have to do it again?

Neighbor Mike Davis, who just moved to East Pecan from Oyster Bay at the end of June and said he finally got his license changed over, said simply: “It’s a hassle.”

Davis and the Crums also questioned the potential impact of a new address on their property deed and insurance.

Davis sent an email to county Planning Director Somer Pell “stating my displeasure,” he said.

Another neighbor Zach Bennington said he was frustrated and noted that other 911 systems are able to distinquish between East and West streets, why can’t Wakulla?

The neighborhood residents expressed skepticism that it’s a 911 issue, and suspect it’s a matter of complaints from people over on Pecan Street who got frustrated with receiving mail and Amazon deliveries for homes on East Pecan. Pell said that the county realized there was a problem when an ambulance call in the neighborhood had trouble finding the right street.

She acknowledged the situation created problems for residents and said the county wanted to offer some sort of tax break to residents to offset the costs associated with having to re-do their addresses.

In the design of the subdivision, East Pecan Street is supposed to loop around and connect to the original Pecan Street. But one resident noted that the development of that phase is months off.

Ken Crum said he complained about the issue to County Administrator David Edwards – and in an aside noted that he and Edwards are third cousins. “Our grandfathers were brothers,” he said.

Meanwhile, residents are supposed to let the county know their preference for a new road name.

Mike Davis said he was voting for Arrowwood, because he’s a Seminole fan.