In the News...

From the Grand Rapids Press, April 17, 2002.

Software conflict limits user access to area databank

by Kyla King

Five months after Grand Valley Metro Council officials formally launched the $14.5 million Regional Geographic Information System, the city of Grand Rapids still is not fully tapped into the computerized network.

Grand Rapids city officials have access to the database of live, up-to-date information provided by 14 municipalities and five agencies outside the city.

But all other REGIS users are unable to access live information from Grand Rapids because the city is running on a different system.

The problem began in September 2001 when Grand Rapids officials opted to upgrade their computer software to a version that was not be compatible with the software used by the rest of the REGIS network, said Paul Klimas, the city's Geographic Information System.

Because of that, the REGIS system has older data from Grand Rapids and is waiting on newer data to be transferred into the system and loaded up.

"Grand Rapids has chosen simply to go forward with meeting their own needs," REGIS director Phil Lund said. "Yes, they went somewhat unilateral on this, but we're making due with the way it currently is."

"We are in touch with Grand Rapids on a daily basis."

Klimas said Grand Rapids chose the new software for more flexibility and to avoid having to redo a lot of work in the future when the inevitable system upgrade happens.

"We're very much a supporter of REGIS and the REGIS concept of sharing information," Klimas said. "We're just piloting this for the other members ... so when REGIS gets ready to jump we have a whole network to make that easy."

Klimas said the new software has allowed the city to write a crime analysis tool, manage customer service activity and create a centralized system to track work activities within in all public works.

But the city's decision has some Kent County officials scratching their heads.

"That sort of defeats the purpose," said Kent County Commissioner Kathy Kuhn, R-Grand Rapids. "Everybody in the county was supposed to be able to share information."

Klimas said the idea of sharing live information is a good idea, but it can be limiting.

"If you take 20 agencies, and you put them into a fixed 'This is what we're going to use,' it then takes 20 agencies to grow at the same pace to maintain this system," he said.

Funded by 20 municipalities and agencies, the $14.5 million database is designed to save local municipalities time and money by giving planners quick access to information that would otherwise be scattered throughout Kent County.

By typing in an address or name, REGIS users can call up maps or aerial photographs of any location in the county. Those maps can be overlaid with information about streets, water or sewer lines, property easements, flood plains, hydrant locations, parcel numbers and property tax records.

Lund said eventually the data will be made available to Internet users, architects, developers, and real estate professionals.

Grand Rapids -- which contributed $3.5 million to develop the original system -- still is paying dues and attending board meetings as a member of the system, Lund said.

Lund said the network is unable to upgrade to the newer software because of budget constraints and because it does not allow parcel information to be updated in the format the county uses.

But Klimas said the city has a technical solution to that problem that calls for REGIS to make a "system configuration modification."

"There is nothing really restricting REGIS from going to (the new software)...I had hoped that this would have happened already," Klimas said. "I believed that can happen at any time and we've offered our assistance."

But Lund said it's not that easy.

"It would be better, of course, if we could all march in lockstep," Lund said. "We may catch up to them, we may not catch up to them."