By Kathleen Weessies
An interview with Ann Burns, Manager of Geospatial Technology for SEMCOG
Name: Ann Burns
Title: Manager of Geospatial Technology
The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG)
Website: www.semcog.org
In 2010, we created the first region-wide building footprint layer and provided that data to counties and local governments. We maintain this data for most of the region, but in some cases we work in partnership with local governments who update the data and provide it back to SEMCOG. The building footprint data layer for the City of Detroit is our most popular data layer within our Open Data Portal.
More recently, we contracted to create region-wide sidewalk data and made it available through our Open Data Portal. This is the newest data layer in our Open Data Portal.
SEMCOG has been creating geospatial data layers for almost 30 years. SEMCOG creates and maintains a variety of geospatial datasets, most of which can be previewed, mapped, and downloaded through SEMCOG’s Open Data Portal.
Much of the data we create is needed for regional planning projects, such as transportation planning, environmental work, regional forecasting, and infrastructure work. We always have our member communities in mind when we create data. Knowing how communities use the data is important, as we want the data to be useful to others as well.
If you are looking for something that you don’t see in the Open Data Portal or the Map Gallery, I encourage you to contact SEMCOG by emailing infocenter@semcog.org.
An interview with Ann Burns, Manager of Geospatial Technology for SEMCOG
Name: Ann Burns
Title: Manager of Geospatial Technology
The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG)
Website: www.semcog.org
What does SEMCOG do?
The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) supports local planning through its technical, data, and intergovernmental resources. The work SEMCOG does improves the quality of the region's water, makes the transportation system safer and more efficient, revitalizes communities, and spurs economic development.- SEMCOG promotes informed decision-making by improving Southeast Michigan and its local governments through insightful data analysis and direct assistance to members;
- SEMCOG promote the efficient use of tax dollars for infrastructure investment and governmental effectiveness;
- SEMCOG develops regional solutions that go beyond the boundaries of individual local governments; and
- SEMCOG is an advocate on behalf of Southeast Michigan in Lansing and Washington.
What is your role at SEMCOG?
My position as Manager of Geospatial Technology at SEMCOG, allows me to focus much of my time on bringing people together to work collaboratively. We meet with counties, communities, private firms, academia, and non-profit agencies to discuss changes in the industry, best practices, and the challenges of keeping up with the ever-changing GIS technology. We share data and work together to create data that we all need.In 2010, we created the first region-wide building footprint layer and provided that data to counties and local governments. We maintain this data for most of the region, but in some cases we work in partnership with local governments who update the data and provide it back to SEMCOG. The building footprint data layer for the City of Detroit is our most popular data layer within our Open Data Portal.
More recently, we contracted to create region-wide sidewalk data and made it available through our Open Data Portal. This is the newest data layer in our Open Data Portal.
What is unique about your offerings that others would be interested to know?
The SEMCOG region is just under 5,000 square miles, with a population of 4.7 million. The population is about half of the entire State of Michigan. It includes seven counties and, 234 cities, villages, and townships., Communities range from urban, to suburban, to rural.SEMCOG has been creating geospatial data layers for almost 30 years. SEMCOG creates and maintains a variety of geospatial datasets, most of which can be previewed, mapped, and downloaded through SEMCOG’s Open Data Portal.
Much of the data we create is needed for regional planning projects, such as transportation planning, environmental work, regional forecasting, and infrastructure work. We always have our member communities in mind when we create data. Knowing how communities use the data is important, as we want the data to be useful to others as well.
If you are looking for something that you don’t see in the Open Data Portal or the Map Gallery, I encourage you to contact SEMCOG by emailing infocenter@semcog.org.
SEMCOG Building Footprints
SEMCOG Traffic Volume Map
I would also like to highlight SEMCOG’s Map Gallery. Although it is important to allow others to access and download our data, I feel it is just as important to visualize the data to tell the story of our region. We have very talented staff at SEMCOG who build these maps in a variety of mapping platforms. Within the Map Gallery, the newest maps are always at the top, under the ‘featured’ section. A few of the most recent maps are the interactive 3D Building Footprint map, the Census 2020 Self-Response Rate map, and the Lake St. Clair Habitat Restoration map. Our most popular map contains Traffic Volume data for the region. This data is very useful for transportation planning and economic development.
Thank you for the opportunity to talk about the great work that SEMCOG does. If you have questions about our GIS program, please contact me at burns@semcog.org.
Thank you to Ann Burns for the great interview! Check out SEMCOG data layers in the BTAA Geoportal here.
Have questions about the BTAA geoportal, or maps and geospatial data in general? Please don’t hesitate to contact our project team!
I would also like to highlight SEMCOG’s Map Gallery. Although it is important to allow others to access and download our data, I feel it is just as important to visualize the data to tell the story of our region. We have very talented staff at SEMCOG who build these maps in a variety of mapping platforms. Within the Map Gallery, the newest maps are always at the top, under the ‘featured’ section. A few of the most recent maps are the interactive 3D Building Footprint map, the Census 2020 Self-Response Rate map, and the Lake St. Clair Habitat Restoration map. Our most popular map contains Traffic Volume data for the region. This data is very useful for transportation planning and economic development.
SEMCOG staff enjoy a unique spot in Detroit
Thank you for the opportunity to talk about the great work that SEMCOG does. If you have questions about our GIS program, please contact me at burns@semcog.org.
Thank you to Ann Burns for the great interview! Check out SEMCOG data layers in the BTAA Geoportal here.
Have questions about the BTAA geoportal, or maps and geospatial data in general? Please don’t hesitate to contact our project team!