Lake Cook Rd and Waukegan Rd, two of Deerfield’s busiest roads, will be undergoing construction this year as part of the Lake Cook Road Construction Project.* The Waukegan Rd portion of the project will feature three stages of construction, with alternating lane closures and changing traffic patterns. Likewise, the Lake Cook Rd portion of the project will feature lane closures and changes to traffic patterns during its four stages of construction.
Due to the high traffic volume and abundance of businesses along these roads, the Lake Cook Road Construction Project will affect many motorists and business owners alike. Thus, the Village has asked the GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Department to create a series of maps depicting not only the extent of construction, but also the lane closures and temporary traffic patterns that will take effect throughout each stage of construction. The creation of these maps through GIS allows the public to have a better understanding of how they will be impacted throughout the duration of the construction project.
*Construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2013. At this time, all phases of construction are proposals and subject to change.
In 1858 the Deerfield Cemetery was opened on the northwest corner of Waukegan Road and Central Avenue. The Cemetery has a lot of history, with at least 15 Civil War soldiers buried there. The Village of Deerfield has recently acquired this property and they have started to look for ways to track burials.
The Village asked GIS to find a way that they could track the plots, graves, and burials. Using MapOffice™ Advanced, GIS set up each grave with a unique id so that it would be easy to link persons buried there to each one. This grave also included birth and death dates, important information about the person, and a link to a picture of the gravestone on FindAGrave.com. By adding this information on MapOffice™ Advanced, the Village of Deerfield can interactively find the layout of each grave, who is buried there, and if there are any vacant spaces.
Like most communities, the Village of Deerfield tracks the movement of Emerald Ash Borer. Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive beetle that devastates ash trees. Instead of using a series of treatments to kill the beetles, the Village has decided to remove affected trees.
In order to keep track of which trees are being affected, the Village inventoried all Ash trees and looked for signs of Emerald Ash Borer infestation. Once this inventory was collected, it was mapped out by using GIS. This allows the easy tracking of trees that are affected and removed. Supporting products can then be created that show the hotpots and even the potential movement of the beetle, which helps focus where tree removals are needed.
The Village of Deerfield has a strict Appearance Code that applies to current and new businesses that are looking to operate within the Village border. The code has criteria intending to assist in focusing on appearance standards that will not restrict imagination, innovation, or variety.
To simplify and assist with this code, GIS was used to create a series of maps to show commercial locations across the Village to show areas that are affected. These were then put into a booklet that the Village will distribute to prospective companies. By using GIS, the Village was able to illustrate where this code will be enforced and help reduce extra time spent having to figure out if a new business will be affected.
The Village of Deerfield has plans to run fiber optic line to connect Village Hall and Public Works. This will improve the speed of moving data between the locations. GIS was used to create a series of maps that showed the location of the utilities and proposed fiber optic line with hand holes. After creating this preliminary map, Public Works went out into the field to markup any changes. The final map will be used by Public Works to install the fiber optic line while knowing where the utilities are located.
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) provides low interest loans for the construction of community water supply facilities and utilities. This loan is used to upgrade or replace existing facilities or utilities to bring them into compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act and State Environmental Protection Act. The Village of Deerfield has decided to use Geographic Information Systems to create a series of maps that shows the locations of the utilities. These six maps that will be created are in locations of construction that is scheduled to be done. Public Works plan is to work on the water utility system while the scheduled construction is being done.
The Village of Deerfield is about to begin an inventory of village owned trees which reside in the right-of-way. In order to effectively track and record all trees in a time efficient manner, the arborist consultant asked that a series of maps be created to assist in locating and recording all trees. Their goal for the maps was to have a good size map that is manageable in the field, as few maps as possible, and staying to a scale of 1 to 100.
The map series that we decided would best suit their needs consists of twenty maps at a size of 36x38. As seen in the attached image, these maps include parcel lines, addresses, and fire hydrant for reference, all layed over the most recent available imagery which was captured in 2010. This map series allows the arborists to effectively plan what routes they will take, locate trees in relation to addresses and landmarks, and have a visual record of data when working in the office.
The Village of Deerfield Public Works\Water Department is in the process of replacing their old water meters with new touch\radio reads. This involves each meter being physically replaced with a new one and as you can imagine is very time consuming. Another restriction is, tracking which and where each one has been replaced. So to assist with this process, Public Works asked the Village of Deerfield GIS Department to plot each one that has been replaced, has not, and ones with only the head being replaced.
By teaming up with GIS the Public Works\Water Department can now more effectively (time) and efficiently (routing) tackle areas\addresses where meters have not been replaced. Also for the first time, the map allows for them to visually view their work.
The Village of Deerfield Community Development Department has begun a process to accurately survey and review all records related to the Deerfield Cemetery. The process involves obtaining records related to the property, plots, and all other associated information. As part of the process, the Village of Deerfield GIS Department was asked to convert the legal plat of the property and develop a base map of the cemetery. The base map will be used as a foundation to continue the development of placing cemetery records into a real world location.
This program will continue to grow into the future with the final goal of creating an accurate account of all records associated with the cemetery along with the ability of staff to locate the information in mapping environment. The image included in this article is an example of the initial plat conversion based on supplied records.
The Village of Deerfield Public Works Department met with the GIS Department to discuss a very important phase of utility updating involving field verification. It was decided that a new Field Note Map Book series would be developed based on a custom grid to fit a usable 11 by 17 inch format vs. the customary 17 by 22 inch standard Field Note Map Book Series. It was decided by staff that the larger sized books were tougher to handle while out in field conducting when conducting their business.
The resize of the product required the GIS Department to update some mapping elements based on the scale change. Items included developing a new grid system for pages, dynamic readable labels for pipes and structure information, and other cartographic enhancements designed for overall easier readability in the field.
Once the maps were completed, produced, and delivered the Public Works Staff takes the products into the field and provide markups when needed. They also use this product and standard sized product to provide markups of the utility information on a planned review cycle. These comments along with field comments are then provided to the GIS Department to produce needed updates to the system. The overall process is very important to help catch field changes and institutional knowledge from the Public Works staff to ensure the GIS system is receiving regular and routine utility update information.
The Village of Deerfield has began a using an Engineering Firm to survey and smoke test the sewer storm system within the village. This program involves using provided GIS data to be used in the field by the Engineering Firm and village staff to conduct the smoke testing program. Smoke testing involves using special equipment to help find defects and issues within the sewer storm system. As smoke is passes through the system equipment is used to detect any leaks within the system. Defects are then recorded and mapped using GPS technology. The process also included verifying mapping information and GPS was then used to update, add, or remove sewer storm system infrastructure.
Once the field data and smoke testing program was completed the Engineering Firm provided the GIS department with all the field data collected by GPS, photos of defect areas, and locations of all defects within the system. The GIS department was able to use this information to update GIS data and mapping and also map the collected defects. The maps then can be used to find trends within the system as well pin point locations that where found to be defective.
This multi-year program provides information that is crucial to the village to help maintain the sewer storm system. The program also benefits the GIS department with providing accurate data to map and use in updating and maintaining mapping data. Working together and integrating community processes with the GIS department helps achieve the greatest benefit possible while conducting field maintenance programs
Public Safety plays a crucial role in the day to day activities of Village of Deerfield. The Village of Deerfield Police Department believes that their daily activities help support a safe and vibrant community. A crucial operational aspect of the Police Department is conducted 24 hours, 7 days a week, all year long is Dispatch. The Dispatch Department and the highly trained officers are responsible for receiving and dispatching appropriate resources for all emergency and non emergency activities in the Village. The major focus of their operation is to respond to all calls placed to 911, dispatch resources, and relay information to officers in the field. Mapping is a major factor in this operation from locating the call in dispatch and to reporting location information to the officers in the field. Without highly accurate, detailed, and up to date mapping data would create a major challenge in the emergency response cycle.
The Dispatch Department uses a very advanced Computer Aided Dispatch System or (CAD). This system handles all aspects of emergency dispatch from the initial call to proper resource dispatch. The system also performs very important incident reporting activities which the Police Department uses to review and analyze their activities. The common component in all of these functions is location and mapping.
The Village of Deerfield GIS department works both with the Police Department and their CAD vendor to load and update all mapping the data needed to support the system. This includes providing highly accurate mapping data developed by the Village of Deerfield to the CAD vendor for loading into their system. The provided mapping data includes extremely accurate street centerline files, address point locations, all district and beat layers, common places layer, and highly detailed aerial imagery. This mapping data is also maintained by the Village of Deerfield and is updated by the GIS Department reducing the overall cost of not relying on a third party vendor and lesser quality of data. This also ensures the mapping layers are as current as possible and makes it possible to update and refresh changes when needed with minimal effort.
In summary, every phone call to dispatch uses some form of the provided data to record and assist Dispatch and Officers with the most up to date and current information. The data is also indirectly consumed by the public in large including Village residents because they benefit in a highly efficient and accurate system when consuming E911 services.
The Geographic Information System (GIS) Department routinely utilizes its valuable resources to analyze the layout of its current utility infrastructures. By using the aerial photography that the village paid for in 2005, the GIS Specialist is able to review utility lines and structures in their current location and compare them to where they are located on the aerial photography. Since the utility infrastructure data was originally created at a time when good aerial photography was hard to come by, many of this data is not one hundred percent accurate.
Although going to the field to identify the locations of utility lines and structures is a good method, the ability to quickly access accurate aerial photography and use it in-house allows for a large percentage of the data to be verified without leaving the desk. This allows the village to save time and money for a good portion of the review process.
It is important to note that using GIS not only can enhance the integrity of the village’s utility data, but it is also key to recognize that having this accurate data allows for trustworthy calculations. For example, when the village conducts a water distribution study, they rely on the most up-to-date data to submit to an outside consultant so they can obtain the most accurate results. Moreover, when the Sewer Department wants to inventory what supplies might be needed for an upcoming project; they can easily look at the current utility infrastructure in GIS to get some ideas. Without an accurate foundation, most analyses cannot provide much value but by using available assets, it is easy to see how GIS can improve the reliability of utility data and make it a more trustworthy resource.
The aerial photography and utility infrastructure review process, in conjunction with the help of GIS technology, helps to answer valuable questions related to the services that the village provides. As times go on, the village continues to successfully update their utility data in order to better understand what they currently own and are in control of, which helps the village to provide a service that on average is not always recognized.
The Village of Deerfield relies on accurate utility information to assist the community staff with their daily activities just like any other local government does. The Village of Deerfield Public Works Engineering Department is working with the RJN Group to conduct a Sanitary Sewer Smoke Testing program throughout the village. This program is being used it to help identify and maintain the condition of the sanitary sewers within the village. The idea of taking this data and integrating it with the GIS utility databases was an easy decision for the village since it would improve data efficiency and allow for better accuracy.
This project involved three parties including the Engineering Department, GIS Department, and RJN Group. The scope of the project included providing RJN with GIS data so that their staff could use for creating field data reports and track the program. The data was also used to provide base information that can be reviewed and updated when field reports are returned back into the office. Another important aspect of this project was reviewing and updating a legacy Community ID system used for Sanitary Manholes within the village. These numbers are used by village staff and are included on all reports. It was important to make sure the GIS data included these numbers and was able to be updated when needed.
Once all the parties had the required data, the Sanitary Sewer Smoke Testing Program continued, and field reports were collected and prepared by RJN Field Crews. These reports would then be sent to the GIS Department for updating. Once all reports for the week were in place, the GIS Department then updated any necessary items within the system and uploaded updated back to RJN for immediate use. This process worked well, as the flow of data and updates went smoothly.
In conclusion, the above is a brief example how multiple departments worked together to communicate beneficial information to all parties involved. GIS was able to provide data for RJN Field Crews to assist in their field operations, and at the same time RJN while conducting the Smoke Testing Program was able to provide field updates back to the GIS office for updating the data. This program is currently ongoing and is proving to be a valuable solution for helping to maintain and update this important GIS utility database.
The Village of Deerfield relies on accurate utility information in order to assist the community staff with their daily activities. For example, the Engineering Department utilizes storm sewer information to assess and resolve drainage issues as well as general pipe replacement. The Public Works Department needs accurate utility information to identify water main size, type and location to respond to water main breaks. This information has been stored in multiple locations including engineering plans, record drawings, as-built drawings, departmental files, and in the minds of seasoned staff members. The ultimate goal is to organize all this information in one centralized location that can be easily accessed by village staff for aiding in their daily workflows.
Using a Geographic Information System (GIS) is most certainly one of the better options on the market today for achieving this goal. Storing utility information from resources like as-built drawings, hand drawn maps and other sources can easily be filed into three specific databases based on whether it is a storm, sanitary, or water utility system. These individual databases contain information on the type, size and location of features including some basics as pipes and manholes for the sewer system as well as hydrants and valves for the water system. Also, over time the databases can evolve to not only store accurate asset location information but also very important engineering information including rims and inverts of various structures. Furthermore, these databases are excellent information storing devices that have the ability to link to external databases as long as a proper structure identification system is maintained.
In order to easily maintain the utility databases, field note map books are created. A field note map book is usually an atlas of pages sized as 17 x 22 inches, where the full community is broken down into multiple pages by a grid in order to present the map at a 1’=100’ scale. By using a grid based on the Professional Land Survey township system, the community can be subdivided into equalized quarter-sections (northeast, southwest). Once the community is properly split up into quarter-sections the grid number is placed on its respective field note map book page.
Using the 1’ = 100’ scale, structures such as manholes and valves can be easily distinguished and field crews can easily markup the pages for edits that need to be made to the utility system by the GIS Department. The notes section on the right of the field note map book page provide an area where field crews and engineering staff can provide comments on discrepancies between what is in the GIS and what is said to be true in the field. Utility lines and structures are labeled with their location as well as the length and other asset information. Also included on each page is a site map of the village. This allows field crews and engineering staff to quickly determine their location relative to the village.
Field note map books allow the village to collect field updates and update the utility data within the GIS system. Once changes are received, the data is input into the GIS system and new field note map book pages are created. By using field note map books, community staff can quickly see their updates added to the GIS and gain trust in the utility data they are using.
The Village of Deerfield is currently in the process of planning for the redevelopment of the northwest quadrant of the Central Business District, commonly known as the “Village Green Redevelopment Project.” This project currently involves multiple village departments and is the planning phase. During this planning phase the GIS Department was requested to run a pilot test program using existing resources create a 3-D representation of the redevelopment area. Until recently this task would have required a significant amount of work to complete usually requiring outside vendors whose fees would only increase the overall budget on the project. However, with the advancement of technology and the available tools within GIS it was easy to use existing geographic information in order to keep this request in-house and save the village some money.
By using the data that the city collects annually the GIS Department was able to create a 3-D model that included buildings, driveways, sidewalks, roads and parks for the “Village Green Redevelopment” area. The creation of this model used GIS tools to extrude each feature listed above to its true elevation height above ground level. The model is then adjusted to show these features in a 3D-world where it can then can be used and consumed for planning purposes including map visualization, panning and rotating in a 3D view as well zooming in and out to better understand the data being represented. At the same time, other GIS tools allow a user to record these movements and replay them as an animation file thus making this method very affective for community staff presentations and public meetings.
In conclusion, it is easy to visualize how the functionality of GIS along with other applications can allow the village to use existing data in a way that was not easily attainable in the past. Furthermore, representing a portion of the real world in a 3-D environment allows village staff to conceptualize what impacts might occur during the redeveloping of a specific area. This brief showcase illustrates how communication and data flow between village departments can be used to produce these types of products and further benefit both the village and public during an important redevelopment project.
Each year the Village of Deerfield creates an official Street Guide of the village. This product is developed and consumed by both village staff and the general pubic. Each year the GIS Department and other village departments go through a two month review and update cycle of this product. During the 2009 review and update cycle it was determined that the village would move this historically black and white product into a color format. In addition to the color format it was also decided that a black and white version of the map would still be maintained for map reproduction using outside sources.
This annual project cycle can be broken down in four phases which include: Phase 1: Review Phase Phase 2: Pre-Final Review Phase Phase 3: Final Review Phase 4: Map production and reproduction
Phase 1: The review phase starts with the updating the previous years map with all known changes collected throughout the year. Secondly, a memorandum is delivered via e-mail or manually to all of proper village recipients along a map for review purposes and checklist as what to look for when conducting the review process. Community staff members that are typically involved with the map update process include department heads or managers, GIS Coordinators and GIS Consortium board members. During this phase the village staff will review and provide comments to the GIS office by a date that is outlined in the title of the memorandum.
Phase 2: Pre-Final review phase begins after the GIS Department makes the appropriate changes to the street guide map from the initial review process and then redistributes new packets with an updated memorandum. These packets are then sent out a second time to the same village recipients with comments form previous responses. This is done so that all village staff employees are able to confirm the changes that were updated in the initial review. Any additional comments are again provided to the GIS office by a date that was included in the second delivered memorandum.
Phase 3: The final review phase is completed when all updates have been completed and all comments from the village staff have been addressed. The GIS Department then reviews the map product one final time for overall map layout clarity and data content accuracy. At this time, a PDF versions or printed maps are provided to the selected village staff employees for one final review and authorization. If there are no further comments at that time the map product becomes official and moves into the final phase of production.
Phase 4: The map production and reproduction phase begins immediately after approval is received in Phase 3. The first sets of maps are printed in-house using the village plotter and distributed to the village’s staff. After initial distribution, additional maps are printed and delivered to the Community Development Department and Village Hall staff for distribution to the public. The final distribution cycle is then delivered to an outside vendor for product reproduction and map folding. These maps are then made available to the public through multiple outlets.
Overall the annual review process ensures the street guide product is reviewed and updated to reflect the community at the time of publication. The product involves multiple village departments and staff members to ensure the end result meets the needs of those who will eventually be using it. Moreover, community collaboration between the village employees and the GIS Department help to make a successful end product good for internal use as well as public distribution.