Sewickley Academy officials believe adding addresses and signage throughout the campus will help ensure vendors and emergency responders get to the right place.
The academy’s address is 315 Academy Ave. in Edgeworth. The problem is there are a dozen buildings on campus.
Its bus loop is at 200 Hazel Lane, and its Cavalier House is located at 105 Beaver Road.
Director of buildings and grounds Jim Miller said for several weeks deliveries were being dropped off at different buildings instead of where they were expected.
That also sparked concerns about first responders going to the wrong areas during an emergency.
He told Edgeworth officials at a recent council meeting the school is working with the U.S. Postal Service to address the issues and have a designated mail delivery location.
“It’s a crapshoot on where some of these deliveries go,” he said.
Plans include using letters to differentiate facilities on campus such as 315A for the Senior School, 315B for Hansen Library, 315C for the Middle School and 315D for the event center.
Miller said efforts are still in the preliminary stages and the academy will continue to coordinate with postmasters and Allegheny County officials. Sign design has yet to be finalized.
“The more we looked into this, the more we realized we could really clean this up a lot,” Miller said. “I talked to the police also about this. That way, each building will have a designated address on it so if we ever have an ambulance come or fire department, they also have those numbers. This isn’t going to be a simple process. It’s going to be a work (in progress) for a while.”
Frick Field and Wardrop Field also will have designated addresses.
Borough Manager Ellen Politi said that was a request from Allegheny County’s address management for 911 purposes.
“If there’s ever an incident happening at the field, dispatch can tell emergency services exactly where on campus to go,” Politi said.
“This does not divide the parcel. The parcel of the property is all the same. Think of it more as a strip mall where you’re assigning individual units to.”
The academy also is considering “You are here” maps to help students and guests..
“The more we can be user-friendly to visitors, in particular, to campus the better,” Miller said. “There’s nothing more frustrating than when people can’t find a building that they’re looking for.”
Council unanimously voted to approve the academy’s plans.
Edgeworth Council Vice President Ivan Hofmann said the address changes are a good move.
“I thought that’s a long time coming,” Hofmann said. “I can’t believe they didn’t have it.”