(A) The location and construction of mailboxes shall conform to the rules and regulations of the U.S. Postal Service, as well as the standards established by Lake County. Mailboxes shall be of light sheet metal or plastic construction conforming to the requirements of the U.S. Postal Service. No portion of the mailbox shall extend over the traveled portion of the road or outside of the edge of the shoulder. Mailboxes installed along streets must be 41 inches to 45 inches above the street surface, in accordance with the requirements of the U.S. Postal Service. The face of the mailbox must be 8 inches back from the curb face in subdivisions. On rural roads, said mailbox face must be located in accordance with the local Postmaster’s specifications for rural mailboxes. If a roadside mailbox is mounted on a post, all mailbox posts shall be designed to break away, or break off from the ground upon impact with a vehicle. The Federal Highway Administration recommends a wooden mailbox support no bigger than four inches x four inches or a two inch diameter steel or aluminum pipe. Said post shall not be buried more than 24inches deep, so that it will give way in an accident. The use of potentially dangerous supports, such as heavy metal pipes, concrete post, or farm equipment such as milk cans or tractor tires filled with concrete is forbidden. All mailboxes shall be constructed sturdily enough to withstand the weight of snow as it comes off the end of a snowplow.
(B) The term “edge of the road” shall refer to the edge of the road surface material that constitutes the traveled portion of the road (e.g., the edge of the pavement in the case of a paved road). The distance of any mailbox from the edge of the road shall be measured perpendicularly from a vertical line projecting upwards from the edge of the road.
(C) Where a mailbox is installed in the vicinity of an existing guardrail, whenever practical, it shall be placed behind the guardrail. No mailbox will be allowed to exist within the county’s right-of-ways if it interferes with the traveling public or the function, maintenance, or operation of the county roadway system. A mailbox installation that does not conform to the provisions of this regulation is prohibited.
(D) All mailboxes installed after this date shall, in addition to the requirements of the U.S. Postal Service, be built and located in a manner that complies with these standards.
(Ord. 1384D, passed 5-12-2015) Penalty, see § 101.99