For over 80 years, Sidwell’s primary focus has been on streamlining the manner in which local government information, and in particular land records data, is maintained and disseminated. Now, with the introduction of the Local Government Information Model (LGIM) and maps and applications (apps) gallery, we have another avenue to provide solutions to our clients. There are multiple maps and apps created by Esri and their partners specifically for Land Records dataset viewing, maintenance, and analysis. Some applications are geared specifically for external use by citizens, some for internal use, and still others have both internal and external functionalities.
The Esri ArcGIS LGIM is a series of comprehensive layers and information that supports multiple maps and apps and creates a foundation for local government basemaps. It is comprised of GIS datasets, web services, and maps that provide organizations with a consistent means of sharing and organizing data and processes across multiple departments. The LGIM encompasses multiple Government agencies including Water Utilities, Elections, Fire, Police, Planning, Facilities, Public Works, Emergency Management, and Land Records. As it is adopted by more organizations, it will provide consistent data sharing and merging between separate Government organizations.
The LGIM maps and apps provide information and services for internal use and for citizens to conduct business with Government agencies. They are pre-configured applications designed to work specifically within the LGIM data structure. Internally, the applications can be used by employees to generate reports, view customized geospatial datasets, and also to create notices and other external documentation. You can access and preview these on the Esri website at http:// solutions.arcgis.com/local-government/gallery/.
Many of the applications are based upon displaying information to citizens such as parcel datasets, address data, and flood zones. Government agencies can also post these applications to a gallery on their website to provide citizens with simple, functional, and convenient access to specific data sets that have been cataloged on ArcGIS.com. The relevant maps and apps chosen by the agency can be displayed on their website, in a gallery page where citizens can click on an application and view the dataset they are interested in. The content, look, and feel of the gallery page is customizable to fit with each agency’s particular needs.
The internal-facing applications are geared toward streamlining in-house procedures to manage address information, review delinquent taxes, land use notifications, generate notices, create map books, create documents for briefings, and edit parcels in the Parcel Fabric data model. One application has the ability to generate specific dashboards for decision makers with pertinent information displayed for simplified and focused analysis. Particularly useful is an application that utilizes multiple datasets to assist in value calculations based upon recent sales, foreclosures, and assessment data. Some of the applications have both internal and external utilization, such as the Deed Drafter, which assists in generating deeds and entering data into the parcel dataset.
Sidwell customers will recognize our LGIM and Parcel Fabric-compatible applications from our Parcel Builder software suite. Our applications include: Parcel Builder Administrator for linking your GIS with your CAMA system and reducing redundant data entry; Cartography for editing annotation and cartographic elements in your parcel dataset; and FARMS, which takes into account multiple land use and geomorphic datasets to arrive at a highly accurate value assessment.
We are proud to be an early adopter of the Local Government Information Model and a developer of solutions to work within and on top of that model. We believe that these new sets of tools and workflows will help government agencies more effectively and efficiently reach their user base while simplifying the internal processes to make this data available. As always, we are here to help, so please do not hesitate to contact us for any additional information or tips and tricks!