Indiana Statewide Orthophotography Program

In 2005, Indiana introduced an ambitious Statewide Orthophotography Program provided a “common operating picture” through a seamless, current, accurate photographic base and control network that “ties” all other framework (base map) and critical infrastructure GIS data sets together. It was the foundation of today’s IndianaMap – a statewide, seamless, highly accurate, locally built and publicly available geographic data infrastructure.

Problem: For homeland security, GIS data need to be accurate, seamless statewide, current, and accessible.

• The scale of the data must meet the demands of its most demanding users – local government.
• The Access to Public Records law exception for GIS data presents significant challenges for getting and compiling local GIS data.
• Differing local government business models present severe challenges for getting and compiling local GIS data.
• High accuracies are required to support mapping of other framework and critical infrastructure data.
• A lack of standards, consistency and lack of interoperability present significant technical limitations to integrating disparate data sets to gain seamlessness.

Solution

The 2005 Statewide Orthophotography Project modernized a critical component of the state’s information infrastructure through a high accuracy base map that is seamless statewide, current, and accessible.

The project supports the strategy of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (http://www.fgdc.gov/nsdi/nsdi.html). The same framework data are available to cross-cutting applications (homeland security, emergency management, economic development, environmental, e-911, Flood Insurance Rate Map modernization, Census data modernization, GASB-34, etc.).

Jill Saligoe-Simmel provided overall project design and management from conceptualization through delivery.

• conceptualized and developed detailed program to support the Indiana Spatial Data Infrastructure and requirements of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security
• maintained commitments as open public domain imagery, while meeting homeland security requirements
• garnered community and partner support
• secured cooperative local, state and federal investment of over $5.5 million for project implementation
• outreach to funders and policy makers through written and oral presentations
• provided regular communications with a community of over 350 stakeholders, including local, regional, state and federal government, private sector, universities, utilities, and non-profits through email, website, newsletters, presentations and group meetings
• recruited and coordinated expert technical advisory team to develop specifications and write the request for proposal (RFP)
• coordinated expert advisory panel / selection committee
• reviewed and approved contractor work and deliverables in partnership with IMAGIS Program Director, Jim Stout
• coordinated the “buy-up” to higher resolution data by individual county emergency management directors
• coordinated team of experts through Indiana University and Purdue University to support mass data storage archival services and public data delivery, including integration through the IndianaMap portal
• negotiated inclusion and delivery of the IndianaMap as authoritative imagery in GoogleMaps and Microsoft TeraServer