Countdown Starts For
New Area Code On Space Coast

Greg Groeller
of The Sentinel Staff

Published in The Orlando Sentinel, Feb 11 1999

We have liftoff.

State regulators have picked 321 -- a salute to the familiar Space Coast launch countdown -- as the new area code for Brevard, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.

The news is a victory for state regulators and Brevard residents, who had lobbied the North American Numbering Plan Administration -- which doles area codes and phone numbers nationwide -- for the exchange. Central Florida beat out the Chicago area, which also requested 321.

In Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties, the 321 area code will "overlay" with the existing 407 exchange, meaning those counties will wind up with two area codes. As early as December, all new phone lines will be assigned the 321 exchange. Customers who already have 407 numbers won't be required to switch.

Having two area codes in one region comes with a price. To accommodate both, people will have to dial 10 digits -- the area code and the number -- when making local calls.

For most Brevard residents, the situation is different. In that county, the 407 area code will be eliminated and replaced by 321. Residents in southern Brevard will keep the 561 exchange. Ten-digit dialing won't be necessary anywhere in Brevard.

The fate of southwest Volusia County, which is split between 904 and 407, is still undecided. Regulators are trying to decide whether to overlay Deltona and DeBary with 321, which would create a third area code, or to convert all of Volusia to 904.

Why is this happening? The explosion of new phone numbers for fax lines, cellular phones and Internet use is straining the national area-code system. Without a new area code, the Florida Public Service Commission predicted, Central Florida could run out of 407 numbers by the end of the year.

Here's what you can expect if you live in Orange, Osceola or Seminole counties:

The PSC hopes to ease consumers into the new system. So beginning April 1, residents will have the option of dialing 10 digits or sticking with the old seven-digit method. Either method will work.

On Dec. 1, 10-digit dialing becomes mandatory. All local calls must be placed by dialing the 407 area code first or the call won't go through. That applies whether you're calling your next-door neighbor or the plumber across town.

The new 321 area code won't start being assigned until Dec. 1 at the earliest. And it could be even later than that if there are still 407 numbers that haven't been taken.

Kevin Bloom, a PSC spokesman, said it's impossible to predict exactly when the region will run out of 407 numbers. But it will probably be no later than 2000.

Once 407 runs out, all new phone lines will be tagged with the 321 exchange. So if you add a new phone line in your home or business, you could wind up with two area codes. No exceptions are planned.

If you live in Brevard:

Residents can begin using the 321 area code on a voluntary basis beginning Nov. 1, but 407 will still work.

Beginning Oct. 1, 2000, the new 321 exchange becomes mandatory and 407 disappears.

While 10-digit dialing does not apply when calling within Brevard, residents will have to dial 321 or 407 when calling Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.

Phone company officials and state regulators concede that the new area code may cause some confusion, particularly when combined with 10-digit dialing.

But they point to a similar plan implemented in Miami-Dade County last year, in which the 305 area code was overlaid with 786. The implementation caused limited confusion and generated few complaints to regulators or phone companies, said Gary Allington, a BellSouth Corp. spokesman.

"It was not as painful as expected in South Florida," Allington said.

In Central Florida, "we expect some criticism but with a short period of acclimation until it becomes second nature," he said. Phone companies likely will advertise heavily in the months leading up to the switch to educate the public and minimize confusion.

Still, consumers need to keep in mind that this is just the beginning. Even with the new area code, Orange, Seminole and Osceola are expected to run out of numbers again in 2004 and Brevard in 2008. Unless another solution is found, even more area codes are on the way.