All municipal governments face the challenge of how to prioritize infrastructure maintenance work. Everything from road repairs to sewer lining to water main upgrades have to be itemized in the annual budget, and as such tend to be managed as unrelated projects. Unfortunately, this method can result in inefficient project planning because a particular component might be repaired in one year, only to be dug up again the next year to complete a different project.
GIS is well-suited to assist local governments with this challenge, as the Village of Lincolnshire can illustrate. First, the Village paid outside contractors to collect data on its road infrastructure and a portion of its sanitary sewer. Next, it used GIS to conduct an in-house analysis of the spatial distribution of water main breaks. Finally, GIS was used to combine all of the findings to pinpoint locations where multiple problems are occurring. Some clear patterns emerged, which made it easy for the Village engineers to prioritize their project plans for the coming year.
This analysis led to a larger discussion with the Village board about infrastructure management. Using maps and statistics, Village staff members were able to demonstrate to the trustees how the road and sanitary surveys augmented their decision-making abilities. Further, the presentation justified the planned studies on storm water retention and more of the sanitary system. Once all of the studies are completed, GIS will be used to aggregate the data and look for spatial patterns throughout the Village. The findings allow for a holistic approach to infrastructure management, avoiding needless waste of time and resources in areas that have multiple issues to address.
One convenience of having GIS is the ability to quickly visualize different scenarios for planning purposes. The Village of Lincolnshire recently leveraged its GIS data to do just that in response to a bill under consideration by the Illinois House of Representatives. HB 30, the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program Act, would allow the sale and possession of small amounts of marijuana to people “diagnosed by a physician as having a debilitating medical condition.” Should the bill become law, Lincolnshire officials would be faced with the possibility of medical marijuana organizations renting or purchasing commercial space within the Village.
In its current form, the bill states that no medical marijuana organization may be within 2,500 feet of a “public or private preschool or elementary or secondary school or day care center, day care home, group day care home, or part day child care facility.” Decision makers in the Village were interested in the proximity of Lincolnshire’s three business districts to child care facilities. To determine this, GIS was used to identify the property lines for all child care facilities and then measure out 2,500-foot buffer zones in all directions. These were added to a map of the three business districts, which highlighted areas where medical cannabis organizations would not be allowed to set up.
Given the controversial nature of this proposal, Lincolnshire’s decision makers were eager to get extra lead time to discuss how they would respond. By providing a quick spatial analysis of two disparate data sets, the Village has an efficient and powerful tool to aid their discussion and decision making.
In October, the Village of Lincolnshire staff held a table-top discussion on its emergency management plan. To test how well everyone knew local procedures as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of the existing plan, selected supervisors were given a practice scenario and had to explain how they would respond. GIS was enlisted to assist with this by creating a map showing the extent of the damage from a hypothetical tornado strike. On the day of the drill, the supervisors received a copy of the map and discussed the challenges that this situation would present to the various responding departments.
GIS was also asked to briefly present on how this technology could be used to support response and recovery operations for the Village. As a member of the GIS Consortium, Lincolnshire has access to a 24-hour hotline number to request GIS support on an emergency basis. When an after-hours issue arises, a GIS specialist can be paged to come on site and help with information collecting, tracking, and sharing. Having a central source of information will allow the various departments to communicate more effectively in the hours and days after the disaster; maps can be quickly generated and distributed to share findings from different sources as they come in. Additionally, as internet access becomes available, GIS can be used to provide information to the public about the recovery efforts, the location of resources such as food, water, and shelter, and other critical spatial information that would help those affected by the emergency.
Lincolnshire is a picturesque village in Lake County, well known for its mature trees, numerous parks, and attractively landscaped open spaces. One of the best ways to enjoy the scenery is to walk or bike around town using the wide local streets and recreational paths that connect them. To encourage non-motorized traffic in the Village, GIS was asked to update the hiking and biking trail map to highlight existing routes as well as key points of interest. In addition to showcasing area parks and retail shopping, visitors to Lincolnshire can also quickly identify free parking and public drinking fountain locations. Local schools are also marked so that parents can identify safe routes for their children to use.
The end product is provided to the public in two formats, print and interactive. The printable version is an 11-by-17 inch map that visitors and residents can print out and keep as a general reference. Anyone looking for greater detail can access the interactive version online to determine precise locations of particular attractions or the proximity of their homes to existing facilities. Both products can be viewed on the Village’s website at http://www.village.lincolnshire.il.us/village-maps.
The Village of Lincolnshire recently unveiled its newly redesigned website with improved organization of information. New features include a bolder color scheme, a citizen support center, and a revamped Village Maps page. One of the key improvements to the maps page was the addition of “My Lincolnshire Property Search,” an easy-to-use property search tool that improves accessibility to MapOffice™ Public. Rather than going directly to the MapOffice™ interface, residents can simply type their address into a text search box. The search function opens a new window that zooms to the property and provides a summary of relevant information to that location. My Lincolnshire Property Search takes away the “intimidation factor” for novice computer users by bypassing the map interface and offering an easy-to-understand interface as an alternative.
In the future, Lincolnshire envisions using the Village Maps page as a central location for a variety of maps that are designed for use by the public. Additions will include maps of recreational trails, school district boundaries, and more.
Last October, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) branch of the US Environmental Protection Agency instituted a new permit requirement to protect our waterways. This application requires public entities to request permission to apply pesticides, which could end up in the groundwater or nearby bodies of water. To be in compliance, the Village of Lincolnshire Public Works department had to submit for the first time an application prior to conducting its annual treatment program.
One of the application requirements is to identify the geographic locations that will be treated, as well as what pesticides will be applied in each place. GIS was able to assist the parks superintendent by generating a map of all of each treatment area, color coded by the type of treatment planned. Without this site map, the applicant would have to write out a lengthy description of each site that was detailed enough for the NPDES reviewers to identify themselves. This would have taken a significant amount of time to complete, whereas GIS was able to create a professional-looking illustration in an efficient way.
For more information on the new application process, please visit the information page on the NPDES website, found at http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=410.
It’s a buyer’s market right now for entrepreneurs and developers. Communities of every size and demographic are competing against each other to attract new and relocating businesses to their area. GIS provides a cost-effective and efficient way to promote available commercial space on an interactive map that integrates seamlessly with the popular website Google Maps. Many GIS Consortium communities, including the Village of Lincolnshire, are taking advantage of this technology to quickly share information with prospective clients.
On a monthly basis, Lincolnshire’s Department of Community Development submits an updated spreadsheet of available properties to GIS. This spreadsheet includes important details such as building square footage, rental/sale prices, and realtor contact information. GIS geocodes the locations (a process in GIS that assigns an address to a location on a map) and then exports them into a file format that is used by Google Maps. This updated file is uploaded to the Village’s website, and in a matter of minutes, a fresh map is available for public consumption. The end product not only provides relevant details to a potential renter or buyer, but places these details in the greater context of the Village’s geography. Potential clients can then view aerial images and labeled maps of the overall site area to get a richer picture of the sites that interest them.
You can see the end product live on the Village’s website by visiting the available site inventory page, http://www.village.lincolnshire.il.us/business/sites.php.
Most cell phone users have experienced the frustration of being in a “dead spot,” or a location where their phones are unable to connect to a network and provide communication with the rest of the world. Because this disconnect is closely tied to geography, the negative feelings generated from a lack of connectivity are transferred to the person’s physical location. Whether a fair association or not, the presence of dead spots can cause people to perceive a community as a less desirable place to visit or live in.
In response to the demand for greater connectivity, the Village of Lincolnshire is documenting its existing infrastructure as well as identifying options for expanding its coverage. GIS tracks this information and assists in the decision-making process for any additions. In the map above, existing towers are shown with a red dot, and a 50-foot “do not built” buffer is added on to show the least logical locations for new towers. The blue and purple areas are locations on private and public land (respectively) that have been identified by the Village planners as possible spots for new towers. The fading buffer zones ranging from 100 to 500 feet are used to give the Village more flexibility in selecting the exact location of any additions.
As an added benefit to using GIS for this project, the Village can repurpose this data easily to analyze its existing and potential revenue generation. Private providers have to pay rental fees and local taxes to install and maintain each tower, so it is important that the Village confirms that it is receiving the appropriate amount of income from existing and new enhancements.
Without a doubt, the biggest challenge facing municipalities across the country is a dwindling supply of revenue. Communities are continually pressured to do more with less, and tough choices are always on the horizon. Fortunately, GIS offers a cost-efficient way to audit existing revenue streams to ensure that all forms of income are maximized in these budget-lean times.
The Village of Lincolnshire recently took advantage of its access to this technology to conduct an audit of its billing records. GIS was used to compare the Village’s address database to finance records for water and sewer billing to find discrepancies. Once the differences between the two sets were identified, GIS generated a spreadsheet of issues and then mapped them across the Village. These two products allowed Finance and Public Works personnel to review the mismatches quickly and determine if there were any customers in the Village who were being improperly billed. As a secondary benefit, both address databases were reviewed for accuracy to ensure that the community is using the most accurate and up-to-date information available.
Without GIS, the Village would have had to manually compare the address lists or hire an outside auditor at considerably greater expense.
One of the many benefits to investing in a quality GIS program is the ability to repurpose that data to support other in-house computer applications. One example of this comes from the Lincolnshire Police Department, which uses the Village’s GIS address database in its dispatching software. Both the 911 and computer-assisted dispatch (CAD) software consume locally maintained address data, which has a higher validity and reliability standard than what is offered in commercial products. Further, address changes can be integrated quickly, leading to less confusion between dispatchers and officers in the field.
Budget-conscious staff members also appreciate the use of in-house GIS data. By asking the GIS specialist to update this data, the Police Department is able to avoid paying several thousand dollars in annual maintenance contracts. As local governments are increasingly pressured to do more with less, they are finding that cost offsets like this one highly valuable.
Comprehensive planning is a critical component in the long-term health of a community. The process of creating a five-year plan for a municipality can be daunting, but recording and sharing this vision provides “big picture” guidance to all stakeholders.
In the Village of Lincolnshire, GIS assists with clear communication by illustrating goals in an easy-to-understand way. One of the many exhibits under development is an overview map showing the future land use plans. Landowners throughout the Village are always concerned with what developments might occur around their properties, so this map quickly explains what will (and won’t) be allowed in the next five years. While this map is still a work in progress, it can already be used to support conversations throughout the planning process.
GIS makes the development of illustrations like this one quick and easy. The Village does not have to pay an outside vendor to create this custom map, and changes are easily illustrated and linked to existing Village data for easy comparison.
The Village of Lincolnshire recently finished its application renewal documentation for the FEMA Community Rating System (CRS). When municipalities analyze their land use within the floodplain and submit their findings, they are rewarded on a sliding point scale that translates into discounted flood insurance rates for their residents. Lincolnshire originally submitted a flood plain assessment in 2001 and is currently a Class 5 community.
Because GIS was used in prior submissions, the Village was able to quickly rerun the land use calculations using the most current flood plain data. Since the baseline work was done quickly, the GIS specialist had time to create two new maps that will strengthen the Village’s submission. These maps focused on the North Branch of the Chicago River and Indian Creek basins within the present and future Village limits. Additionally, each map displayed the land use statistics for the watershed depicted so that the reviewers could easily find the data that they need.
Without GIS, the CRS application process would require much more staff time. By reducing the initial workload by using past applications as a starting point, Lincolnshire was able to devote free time to creating new documentation to beef up its application. Undoubtedly, Village residents are happy to have more money in their pockets as the economy continues to fluctuate.
When developers are making plans for a new construction project, they may opt to install the utilities they need and then sell the completed system to the local government for general public use and maintenance. This arrangement, known as a recapture agreement, allows the developer to handle the utility installation process instead of taking up resources in the local Public Works department. The local municipality agrees to buy the completed system from the developer according to an agreed-upon fee schedule. This schedule has to be approved by the local board and created into an ordinance to officially approve the use of public funds.
As of 2011, the Village of Lincolnshire has 15 active recapture areas. This impacts daily operations because these agreements have to be referenced any time the Village receives a building permit application. If someone applies to do work in a recapture area, he or she may be responsible for paying an access fee to the developer to use the utility system. By creating a map of recapture areas, Public Works administrators can quickly check a permit application’s location to determine whether or not it falls into a recapture area. If it does, the applicant will be notified of any corresponding financial responsibilities.
Lincolnshire’s recapture map is currently being used in print form, but will soon be available in MapOffice™ Advanced as a custom overlay. This will allow Village staff to search electronically for an address and determine immediately whether it falls into a recapture area. Thanks to this application of GIS technology, the Village is saving time and money by completing a once labor-intensive process in a matter of seconds.
As the old joke goes, “There are only two seasons here: winter and construction.” As Chicagoland moves into construction season, local governments are tasked with rerouting traffic flow to make room for much needed repairs. In the Village of Glencoe, one project includes a complete overhaul of the commuter parking lots around the Metra station. This multi-week project requires Public Works staff to close different lots on different days, which disrupts the normal flow of commuter traffic.
With GIS, the Village was able to quickly create a map of the work site and include it on a poster to notify commuters well in advance of the project’s start. Once work actually began, GIS was able to quickly create maps of alternate parking sites so that commuters who missed the initial notification could find alternate parking places quickly. These maps were posted at the Metra station as well as online, providing multiple sources of information to the public in an efficient manner. Without GIS, Village staff would have to either rely on verbal explanations or create hand-drawn maps that were less accurate and showed fewer details to orient viewers.
The annual process of identifying the most critical locations for resurfacing projects is challenging. Unfortunately, there is never a shortage of roads in need of improvement, but always a lack of funding to cover the whole list. In an effort to make better informed decisions on how to use Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) funds, the Village of Lincolnshire decided to review its history for possible patterns. By comparing each year’s work, Public Works staff will be asking, “Are there any stretches of road that we have repeatedly resurfaced in a short period of time?” Rather than continuing to spend limited resurfacing funds to put a proverbial bandage over a bigger issue, the Village hopes to rule these locations out of the pool for MFT funding. Instead, these roads would be cataloged as better candidates for reconstruction.
To answer this question visually, the Public Works intern reviewed paper files and compiled a table of completed MFT projects dating back to 1980. This table was then mapped out in GIS to visually represent street segments that have been resurfaced. A graded color code was used to denote the year of resurfacing, with older projects in red and recent projects in green. While this analysis has not yet been completed for the whole Village, there are already locations emerging as possible candidates for more comprehensive repairs. By pulling these streets off of the master list, the Village hopes to make better use of public funds by identifying roads that would benefit the most from resurfacing.
Lincolnshire has undergone a joint project with its neighboring communities Mettawa and Bannockburn to look at open space. The project is being coordinated through Chicago Wilderness and is funded through the Grand Victoria Foundation. It is unique in that it provides the opportunity for the three communities to work together to identify Green Infrastructure, determine its connectedness, review community ordinances and policies related to green infrastructure. Private and public rain gardens examples of green infrastructure that are being looked at.
The Village has developed an Open Space Management Plan and encourages participation of staff in maintenance and care of environmental issues. To support the protection of natural resources, the Village has adopted the Chicago Wilderness Biodiversity Recovery Plan, the North Branch of the Chicago River Watershed Plan, and the Indian Creek Watershed Plan. Additionally, the GIS provides staff a resource to aid in the identification of woodlands, wetlands, floodplains and other environmentally sensitive lands. This information is used as a development and management tool.
Starting on October 4th the Village of Lincolnshire began its annual Leaf Collection Program. The program was completed on the first Friday in December. The program services approximately 1,707 residences.
GIS was used throughout the project. It was used at the onset for route planning, during for coordination and at the conclusion to analyze the success of the program. On December 13th the Mayor and Board of Trustees considered whether to continue the residential leaf collection service.
Currently, the Village picks up leaves in all residential neighborhoods, except private developments, from the first Monday in October until the first Friday in December. In 2010, more then 8,000 cubic yards of leaves were collected. This is an increase from the 6,700 collected in 2009. The options being considered by the Village Board include maintaining the program, creating a subscription program, or discontinuing the program. They will also be discussing options for the residents in the event that the program is discontinued.
Public Works and GIS staff created an analysis map that showed participation by street in the leaf collection program. According to the data collected by Public Works 91% of the streets eligible participated in the leaf collection program at some point. 11% of them participated every week and a majority of the streets had weekly participation between 75 and 99% of the weeks. A GIS map was created outlining the weekly street participation graduated by color. The map was included as part of a memorandum presented to the Mayor and the Board of Trustees.
The project was approved based on the report and supporting maps to take place again in 2011.
The Village of Lincolnshire Streets Department in compliance with new Federal Sign Regulations is to begin the process of inventorying all signs within the village. The process will involve using staff in the field to review and inventory all signs within the corporate limits. To assist the staff, the GIS Department was asked to take an existing sign inventory database and make it available for field crews to view, update, and use. The GIS Department prepared a device which had all the mapping and sign data displayed to assist crews while conducting the inventory process. Most signs will only need to be reviewed and updated, but field crews will have the ability to update, add, remove, and modify any asset while in the field. When the inventory is completed the returned data will be brought back into a Sign Inventory Database which will continue to be used when new signs are added or removed.
The final goal of this program is to ensure the Village of Lincolnshire is meeting all Federal Sign Regulations and all signs have been properly inventoried. The image in this article is an example of the mapping and data available to field crews while conducting field data collection.
The Village of Lincolnshire Public Works Department conducts a Pavement Patch and Repair Program for Village Streets in need of work. The goal of this program is to maintain and repair roads within the Village that have been identified that work needs to be done to improve the quality of the surface.
The GIS Department was approached by the Public Works Department to take an existing database of information and link to the GIS system to help locate and identify the patching locations throughout the Village. The database contained all location information, type of repairs, range of repairs, classification system of the repairs, and other key pieces of information that is needed to conduct this program.
The GIS Department used the provided database and mapped all the Pavement Patching Locations. Using available software and tools, the GIS Department was able to link the database and it’s records and assign a location within the Village. These locations then were turned into mapping points which contained the data from the database.
The end result of this task was the Village was able to take information, map that information, and then visualize the information in a mapping environment. The mapping products then can be used for planning purposes, inventory, and reporting as the Pavement Patch and Repair Program is being conducted.
The Village of Lincolnshire has a rich intranet based mapping application MapOffice™ Advanced for all village users to access while on the network. The application has tools designed to fulfill business processes of the village staff to obtain information on a daily basis. MapOffice™ Advanced has a specific view to show Digital Terrain and Contour Information for viewing elevation data. Some users informed the GIS Department that they would like view just the Contour Information separate from the Terrain View. The goal was to provide village staff with a cleaner version of the Contour Information which could be used when printing Utility Infrastructure Maps. It was decided that a Custom Contour Overlay would be created to fulfill this request.
The GIS Department created and specific data layer that would display the Contour Information and worked with development staff to load this data layer as a Custom Overlay view within the MapOffice™ Application. When the data layer was completed, reviewed, and approved the application was updated to reflect the overlay. The end result gave village staff the ability to display the overlay when needed and print simple Contour and Utility Maps from MapOffice™ Advanced.
The Village of Lincolnshire has been conducting an ongoing process to ensure all overland, open channel, and other features are connected to the storm sewer system. Field crews from the Street’s Department began this process using existing GIS utility atlases to help identify all open channel and overland water flow that connects into the storm sewer system. After completion and some field verifications the data was provided to the GIS Department for updating.
When the updates were completed the GIS Department then began a process of connecting the network together using tools designed to build networks. With the updates completed, the total storm sewer system can now be used to effectively trace from any point within the system and provided a downstream solution. This will enable to staff to identify exactly how storm water runoff enters, travels, and exits the total system.
Future plans for this project include developing basin maps show how systems work to flow the storm sewer water throughout the Village.
The Village of Lincolnshire has been going through a process to ensure all overland, open channel, and other features are connected to the storm sewer system. Field crews from the Street Department began this process using existing GIS utility atlases to help identify all open channel and overland water flow that connects into the storm sewer system. After completion and some field verifications the data was provided to the GIS Department for updating.
When the updates were completed the GIS Department then began a process of connecting the network together using tools designed to build networks. With the updates completed, the total storm sewer system can now be used to effectively trace from any point within the system and provided a downstream solution. This will enable to staff to identify exactly how storm water runoff enters, travels, and exits the total system.
Future plans for this project include developing basin maps show how systems work to flow the storm sewer water throughout the Village.
The Village of Lincolnshire has completed a process of identifying all storm sewer outfalls that discharge into streams and rivers. This process was completed to help prepare for NPDES requirements and also to determine if all outfalls have been correctly accounted for throughout the village.
Village staff used provided GIS maps showing the existing storm sewer infrastructure and ArcView technology to review the current system. The review process allowed staff to verify the data in the GIS system and report any needed updates. Staff also assigned a unique id system for each outfall to be maintained for reporting purposes.
After the review, the GIS department conducted the data updates and produced a Village-wide Storm Sewer Outfall Map showing the newly developed id system. This map is currently being used to ensure all outfalls are accounted for and for future planning and reporting activities.
This is a basic example how the GIS department and village staff work together to ensure the current data is correct and ensure data within the GIS system is being updated on a regular basis.
Public Safety plays a crucial role in the day to day activities of Village of Lincolnshire. The Village of Lincolnshire 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 Lincolnshire 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 Lincolnshire 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 Lincolnshire 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 Village of Lincolnshire like many municipalities relies on zoning ordinances to help shape and control the growth of the Village. Along with zoning requirements, the Village also regulates development of residential zones by deploying setback regulations. These regulations help control the size and placement of structures on the lot to ensure adequate spacing within structures within each district or block. This ensures that any given subdivision, street, or block is appealing and avoids any possible situation of residential structures being built too large for the lot it is on.
The Community Development Department approached the GIS Department to determine the feasibility of visually displaying and mapping the setback regulations throughout the village. It was determined that the data provided gave the required information to place the regulations into a GIS layer viewable in map or GIS applications. The GIS Department began to organize and develop a draft map that displayed each setback regulation, along with the property on each block that established the setback, and labels that displayed the extents of the setbacks. The data was designed to display colored lines with labeled values for each setback and highlighted the property that established the Setback. The goal of this map was to vividly show the setbacks so they can be observed on a wall-mounted map in the Community Development Department. During the review process, the map took on a few different forms and finally it was decided to break the village into quadrants to achieve a better visible scale. A snapshot of the map is displayed to the right.
The outcome of this map is still under development, but the value of the map will be realized when completed and the village staff will be able to see all setbacks in visual form for the entire village and compare how areas are being developed. The map will also serve as a historical and archiving tool storing this information in visual form outside the normal text environment. Without GIS, this task would be a challenge to complete.
The Village of Lincolnshire 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 Lincolnshire and the Geographic Information System (GIS) Department have been continuously looking for new ways to incorporate GIS into historical projects that help maintain important data. An opportunity arose when village personal came to the GIS Department with a request to update and replace a legacy wall mounted map showing all village annexations.
The existing map contained all annexation information including ordinance numbers, dates, number of acres, and extents. The data was further broken down by decade and displayed on the map accordingly. The map itself was produced years earlier using Computer-aided Design (CAD) technology which was no longer available for community use. The challenge of this project was to get all the information contained on the map into GIS so we can update and maintain this information going forward. The process identified involved converting the map into the GIS environment over a period of time and when complete, all the important information will be available for mapping, analysis, and updating.
The conversion of the map was a basic operation, in a sense, which involved removing the existing wall mounted map and then for GIS technicians to convert the content from the paper world into the digital world. Attention was focused on making sure all relevant data was transferred over and the end product would meet all current future needs including: data updating and map reproduction. Once the conversion process was completed a complete review and update cycle were performed followed by the official replacement of the existing product with the updated GIS produced product.
In conclusion, it is easy to see how the functionality of GIS within the community can be beneficial for all parties. It is very important for both the GIS department and other village departments to continue to seek out opportunities where they can share important information. GIS is uniquely positioned to help provide a common platform for data collection, maintenance, and visualization of geographical information and this project is a prime example of how existing data from multiple departments can be shared and used more efficiently.
The Village of Lincolnshire and the Geographic Information System Department have been continuously looking for new ways to incorporate GIS into the daily business processes and work flows conducted by their departments. The village’s Public Works Department had previously installed a “Sanitary Sewer Televising” Program and for many years since its inception has used it to help identify and maintain the condition of the 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.
Once the idea of integration was decided upon the GIS Department and the village’s Public Works Department began to outline a plan for proper methods of data capture in order to better understand the sanitary sewer system and what might be needed for this process to work. The ultimate goal was to use highly accurate base data collected by an external consultant and update this information on the existing sanitary sewer system database within the GIS Department. Features that were identified included residential and commercial service connection locations, pipe size verification, pipe material identification, pipe and asset condition and the positional accuracy of sewer mains and structures.
With all goals outlined in the project’s plan the next phase looked into the process of how to incorporate the data from the external consultant into the GIS database. Since many functions of GIS data creation involve manual work it was determined that best approach was to use televising reports and cross check these reports the GIS system. During this process, GIS technicians would review data provided and update the system while conducting normal data maintenance procedures. This method enabled crucial data updates and information to be added into the system as part of a normal work flow. Although the updates would not occur overnight they would however be integrated into the GIS database progressively with an eventual output to the end users.
In conclusion, it is easy to see how the functionality of GIS along with other business processes within the community can be beneficial for all parties. It is very important for both the GIS Department and other village departments to continue to seek out opportunities where they can share important information. GIS is uniquely positioned to help provide a common platform for data collection, maintenance and visualization of geographical information and the above project showcase is a prime example of how existing data from multiple departments can be shared and used more efficiently.
In 2007 the Village of Lincolnshire celebrated their 50th Anniversary. To mark this occasion the Village planned multiple events to occur around the 4th of the July holiday. As part of the planning phase the Village requested the Geographic Information System (GIS) Department to review the possibility of creating a custom banner to celebrate this occasion. The requirements of the banner were two fold, one, to show and illustrate important village information and two, be large enough to promote public interaction. The project included the interaction of multiple village departments contributing valuable input including content, history and statistical data. The total project can be broken down into three simple project phases which are listed below:
Phase 1: Planning Phase
Phase 2: Banner Research and Banner Content Development Phase
Phase 3: Banner production and delivery Phase
Phase 1: The Planning Phase lasted one month and was completed four months prior to the planned 4th of July and 50th Anniversary celebrations. Based on the information provided to the GIS Department organization and outlines of the banner’s template began to take shape. After multiple reviews and adjustments the banner template the overall concept was completed. The final banner layout was set to be eight-one inches wide by thirty-six inches tall in order to meet requirements of the village’s color plotter and the content was to set to include six separate categories.
Phase 2: The banner research and banner content development phase finalized the following six categories formulated around a graphic timeline. The categories included:
- Graphic maps depicting annexation and corporate limits by decade as the village grew over time
- Chart timeline showing all past and current village board members and mayors
- Population growth and statistical timeline
- Unique village milestones and their respective dates shown along a timeline
- General village statistics
- Aerial imagery overviews provided by outside sources for 1939, 1974, and 2006
This phase included multiple reviews, research and update cycles based on valuable village staff feedback. This phase also included researching outside sources to finalize banner content.
Phase 3: The third and final phase of this project was production. From here, the GIS Departments took on the responsibility to take all the information provided, finalize the banner and use available resources plot and mount the banner. The banner was completed using ArcView and exported to PDF format for reproduction. The banner was then printed in-house using the village’s plotter saving reproduction costs. The banner was reviewed one final time and then printed on high quality heavy gloss paper, sprayed with a fixer to avoid any smearing and mounted on multiple backboards
The final project outcome was well received by both village staff and the general public. By deploying the proper planning methods and conducting multiple review cycles all parties involved in the project were able to provide and take ownership on the overall banner product. The final banner was completed and proudly displayed at the village’s 50th Anniversary Celebration, a great example of how the village staff and the GIS Department could work together to accomplish an important and specific task.