Introduction
[from the document]
This document describes the state of the King County Geographic Information System (KCGIS) as of December 2007. It represents the culmination of a collaborative effort by personnel throughout the County to delineate the 2008 GIS work programs for participating agencies. GIS is critical to the business of King County, as demonstrated in its use for property appraisal, permit review, emergency services, human services, election services, wastewater facilities planning, natural resource and parks management, waste management, public health, road maintenance, transit services, airport management, crime analysis, budget development, policymaking, legislative support, and growth management. This document provides the details of how GIS supports those and many other business functions.
The year 2008 marks the beginning of the seventh full year of operation of KCGIS under its current governance structure. Since the spring of 2001 enterprise GIS functions within King County have been organized under a single point of accountability – the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) Director. At that time a coordinated management structure was established to govern enterprise GIS at both a technical and policy oversight level. The result is a streamlined, cost-effective organization for the performance of King County's GIS activities.
A key mission of KCGIS is to generate an annual comprehensive work plan (known as the Production Operations and Maintenance Plan, or O&M Plan). This document is the 2008 edition of that work plan. It builds on the experience of the 2002 -2007 O&M plans. The plan includes information on the five major components of any GIS - hardware, software, data, applications and staff. Each of these is addressed in the context of current structures and planned changes for fiscal year 2008. The result is a comprehensive picture that details the King County GIS work program. As in previous years, the 2008 O&M Plan provides lists of data and applications, descriptions of current work tasks, details of agency GIS programs, and information on GIS budgets.
The document is organized in four parts:
- Introduction
- Organization
- Priority Initiatives
- Agency Work Plans
Four Appendices present supporting information:
- Appendix A – Summary Information
- Appendix B – KCGIS Center Services
- Appendix C – Committees
- Glossary
The Organization section details how GIS efforts are organized within the County. The Priority Initiatives section provides information on the GIS endeavors identified through the work of the governance committees as having significant benefit and hence high priority for accomplishment. These priorities change each year, with some new initiatives added and some initiatives carrying over from year to year until they are completed. The Agency Work Plans section provides information on the strengths, weaknesses, challenges and goals lying before the constituent agencies as they implement and manage their GIS programs. This section also includes a listing of each agency’s major GIS projects. Appendix A provides a concise and orderly assessment of each agency’s GIS staffing, budget, licensed software, data, applications, and servers. Appendix B summarizes the KCGIS Center’s role and its functions in the enterprise GIS. Descriptive information on the various committees that make up the governance structure is contained in Appendix C. The Glossary provides a convenient reference for terms (particularly specialized terms) used in the plan.
A list of critical tasks is distilled from the plan by the Technical Committee annually and then distributed as a separate document. The “2008 O&M Work Task List” will serve as a core working document to identify and track the progress of GIS work program items throughout the year.
KCGIS embodies a rich source of data, a unique set of innovative applications, and a group of highly skilled and motivated professionals serving the public’s geographic needs. This resource is essential to the diverse business functions of King County, and the 2008 O&M Plan describes it fully. Support from the County Executive, management, and staff has provided a solid foundation for KCGIS to continue to grow and provide high-quality, cost-effective, and valued service to the citizens of King County. The annual King County GIS O&M Plan continues to be very much a working document, not a plan to sit on the shelf. The information in this document will be used to refine King County GIS through cooperation, coordination, communication, and consensus.
A highlight of 2007 was the acquisition of aerial imagery based on cost sharing agreements with outside agencies and between various departments within King County. This imagery data will be made available to the entire King County government in 2008 and will be shared with King County cities, who will, in turn, become partners in the funding of future imagery acquisition.
Many of the priority initiatives in 2008 build upon those begun in 2007. For example, processes for maintaining, updating, and accessing the extensive addressing data collected in 2006 and 2007 will be developed in 2008. The successful collaboration with King County cities to improve cadastral data will be continued and expanded to new cities. TNET data will be updated, and applications will be migrated to use the updated data.
New initiatives will also be undertaken to develop tools to enhance work efficiencies. Prototypes of web-based mapping tools and Open Source applications will be developed and tested to determine the viability of such approaches. Innovation and improved accuracy of geographic data are important themes for KCGIS. The mutual benefits to be gained from collaboration, cooperation, and consensus should allow KCGIS to achieve the challenging goals for 2008. Adequate funding is always at risk, but the value of GIS in meeting the business needs of the county is immense. KCGIS is prepared for both the challenges and opportunities ahead in 2008.
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