Imagine a park ranger telling you a fire is headed toward your neighborhood and to please warn your neighbors. How are you going to do that? This leads to a more general goal: after an earthquake, sudden evacuation, or similar event, you need to quickly and accurately answer — “My neighborhood has P people. Of those, A are okay, B need help, and C are missing. What are P, A, B, and C?”
The Maui fires showed what happens when no one is prepared to do this. On the other hand, South Skyline neighborhoods have had great success with these processes during events like the CZU Lightning fire.
What a Neighborhood Directory Is
A directory is a list of each address in your neighborhood with names, email addresses, phone numbers, and radio call signs for all residents. This becomes the reference data for all your outreach efforts. Store it as a Google Doc or similar, with appropriate access controls to keep the information private.
Key Principles
1. Inclusiveness — A moral goal is to leave no one behind. Try to find everyone who lives in the neighborhood, even people who don’t want to talk to you. With large lots and secluded homes, it takes networking to discover everyone. When the need arises, everyone deserves a helping hand.
2. Things Change — Even if you have a directory, residents change more than you’d expect. Kids grow up, tenants come and go. Update your directory at least annually. The best check is participating in county emergency drills — or simply send a test message to the list and look for delivery errors or stale entries.
3. Landlines Are Disappearing — In many neighborhoods, fewer than half of homes have landlines. Collect mobile phone numbers for everyone in each household. Mom and dad may be at work in the valley, and only a teenager is at home — you won’t reach them without a mobile number.
4. Privacy and Security — It’s a leap of trust for neighbors to share their contact information. Be very careful about how you store and share it. Make sure only appropriate parties can access it, and communicate clearly that you take privacy seriously.
5. Transparency and Consensus — Be transparent about the process so everyone is aligned. These efforts work better when you take time to build consensus and understand neighbors’ concerns.
Getting Started
- Identify all addresses in your neighborhood — including secluded cottages and secondary structures
- Walk or drive the neighborhood to find residents you may not know
- Use an existing email list or neighborhood association as a starting point
- Store the directory in a Google Doc or similar, shared only with trusted neighborhood coordinators
- Review and update at least once a year
Managing the neighborhood directory is a key responsibility of neighborhood coordinators.
See Neighborhood Communications for how to use the directory to notify neighbors and conduct welfare checks.