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Penticton News

New digital Penticton map makes development easier

Penticton's WebMap is an upgrade to make it easier to track city development.
Image Credit: Source/City of Penticton

The view of Penticton has just become a great deal more clear – at least from a mapping perspective.

The City of Penticton has launched WebMap, an online map based on geographic information system (GIS) data. Users can apply various layers of information to the maps based on their needs: city boundaries, street names, zoning, official community plan and hazard areas. For a given parcel, public data such as assessed value and land size is available.

“New technology allows the City of Penticton to offer enhanced information to residents and businesses, and this new map system fits with the city’s vision of striving toward innovation," acting mayor Garry Litke said.

Penticton’s WebMap will replace MapGuide, the city’s original online mapping system implemented over 10 years ago that could no longer accommodate enhancements in the field of GIS. The new system was developed in conjunction with iOpen Technologies, an Abbotsford firm specializing in GIS implementation, using the ESRI platform.

GIS is the industry standard for making better decisions about location. Common examples of public GIS data include real estate information, route selection and conservation, as well as bike and trail networks. GIS-based maps and visualizations assist in understanding situations and in storytelling, helping the public understand what is happening in a geographic space.

Long-time map users will notice a significant difference in terms of the speed of loading and navigation and increased functionality. The new system can be used on all web browsers, and gives users additional functionality like bookmarking favourite maps and online “marking up” the map with text and shapes, measuring anything from properties to driveways.

“We are excited to provide current mapping and property information to the community in a format accessible by all devices,” technology manager Kristin Wilkessaid. “The long-term plan is to add features that enable people to highlight community jewels like parks and trails, and their attributes. For example, if a user brought up all the beaches in the City of Penticton, they could zero in on those specific areas featuring playgrounds.”

Penticton’s WebMap can be viewed by visiting http://mapping.penticton.ca.

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