YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
By the end of this month, individuals should have Internet access to various public records via the Geographic Information System, or GIS, being developed by the city of Springfield, Greene County and City Utilities.
David Patillo, computer services manager for the Springfield-Greene County Library, said there are now two GIS servers in place, and the library has one full-time staff member working solely on adding data to those.
"Right now we're working mainly with the city, which is giving us all public data available. We're also trying to get aerial photos to add to the database," he said.
Patillo said a public forum held in February revealed that several people in the community want to see aerial photographs on the GIS. He said people also indicated they wanted computer access to as many public records as possible.
A GIS study conducted in 1998 by Butler, Rosenbury & Partners, to outline national trends in GIS and how GIS would develop locally, included a survey of 35 area professionals working in the areas of architecture, engineering, real estate, contracting and home building.
The survey was done to public interest in the GIS. There was a 71 percent response to the survey, and 96 percent of those responses indicated that it would be helpful to businesses to be able to retrieve photos via the Internet.
While Greene County does provide modem access to some records, Patillo said, for the most part people have to visit various public offices to gain access to such records as property ownership, assessed property value and personal property tax information.
Patillo said that eventually, the GIS will contain both city and county public records. He said the GIS will also contain maps, statistics, demographics and census reports.
Patillo said computer access to this kind of information is going to be more convenient, especially for planners and developers, real estate agents and businesses looking to relocate.
He said there are already some selected GIS sites linked to the library's Web site, but he said those mainly address what types of information will be available in the GIS when it's ready for use.
However, Patillo said, the GIS will never really be finished. "There will always be more data to add to the system, so it will keep changing as more information is added," he said.
The GIS was made possible by a $25,885 grant through the Library Services Technology Act. The grant paid for the hardware and software for the project.
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