Visitors to Helena’s Shannon Glen subdivision may catch themselves having a hard time finding their destinations.

The subdivision, located close to Highway 58, has a number of homes with house numbers that are out of sequence.

Helena Fire Chief John Wilder said the problem first occurred when houses began to sprout up around the original houses within the 30-year-old subdivision. The newer houses were given higher address numbers regardless of their location within the subdivision.

Wilder said the situation has been problematic for emergency workers trying to quickly locate houses in the neighborhood.

A letter sent to residents asking them to consider renumbering their houses was met with reluctance, so the city is considering other methods.

“We’re not going to renumber the addresses in there without the residents’ consent,” he said. “I’m not going to force a change on someone that doesn’t want one.”

Wilder said he doesn’t want to cause a problem for residents by forcing them to change their mailing address, but he does want them to understand there is a problem.

“I think they need to know, and we’ll work together to find a solution to this problem,” he said.

The homes that are out of sequence are at the Shannon Glen entrance, so he’s considering asking those few residents to have their homes renumbered.

Also, Wilder said it is a requirement for residents to make sure their house numbers are visible from the road.

“I’m trying to make it as pain-free as possible for people to find them,” he said.