Orange County Parcel Basemap Reengineering Project

Author: Kevin Hardester
Organization: Orange County Property Appraiser

200 S. Orange Ave., Suite 1700
Orlando, FL 32801
USA

Phone: (407) 836-5072
Fax: 407-836-5985
khardester@ocpafl.org

Government agencies throughout Orange County, Florida--as well as the public--need an accurate geographic information system for numerous reasons: generating maps of property ownership for appraisal purposes, dispatching emergency vehicles to correct locations, locating utility and storm water facilities with GPS, determining land use and zoning requirements, and many others. The parcel basemap currently available at the Orange County Property Appraiser's Office (OCPA) was developed through scanning techniques. The goal of this project is to coordinate with the Orange County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) and cities within the County to develop an accurate and seamless parcel map, based on survey ground control data. Orange County covers approximately 1,000 square miles and has nearly 300,000 parcels.

OCPA is developing an accurate GIS basemap for the entire County by employing survey ground control, plats, legal descriptions, and coordinate geometry (ARC COGO). Rectified orthophotography (corrected digital aerials) and planimetric data (man-made and natural feature lines such as roads and water bodies) provide background information for the mapping process. The planimetric data meets 2' horizontal accuracy and 1' pixel resolution standards and can support additional County needs such as vehicle routing and land use planning.

The Property Appraiser's Office is the lead project management agency for parcel reengineering. OCPA coordinates closely with the County Surveyor and uses a dedicated five-person contract GPS survey crew, coordinated by the County Surveyor, to provide reconnaissance and ground control points. The BCC is supplementing the Property Appraiser's staff with eight contract mapping positions. Each participating city also supplies a cartographer for the time it takes to map within their city limits. All work is performed on-site at OCPA.