The Village of Winnetka has been hard at work developing and fine-tuning its Emergency Event Tool for emergencies as flooding, tornadoes, blizzards and more. This tool was brought to the test on April 18th, 2013 after a major flooding event in the Chicagoland area. Winnetka was experiencing large amounts of downpour rain in a small amount of time and required the assistance of GIS and Business Intelligence to track flooding patterns and areas of concern. Through the Emergency Event Tool, the flooding was able to be further analyzed by staff.

Winter operations for local government Public Works departments involve many different tasks, from snow and ice removal to decorating for the holiday season. Often times these operations can require a significant amount of resources and man hours from department staff to complete, which can be further complicated by personnel turnover, illness, or some other event that impacts staff availability. To assist with better documenting their sidewalk snow removal routes for an easier transfer of information between staff members, the Village of Winnetka, IL Public Works department asked the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) department to help develop a series of maps showing the different routes and highlighting certain areas that may require additional attention during a snow event.

The Insurance Services Office (ISO) is the fire industry standard bearer for developing and implementing risk mitigation standards that local and regional fire departments use for managing their internal assets, requesting capital improvements, and providing training to department personnel in an effort to reduce the over risk of fire-related problems within their respective response areas. Every ten years, the ISO conducts a department audit to measure how equipped the department is in handling a fire event and to determine the level of risk they carry based on certain criteria, such as number and location of available hydrants and the condition of the department’s vehicles. For the Village of Winnetka, IL Fire Department, this audit was recently conducted and, in order to help display some of the available department assets and other functions the department is capable of, the department turned to the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Department to assist with developing a series of maps that were provided to the ISO auditor to use as a visual review tool.

Leveraging geospatial technology to make a department, or departments, within municipal government more efficient can take on many different forms. For the Village of Winnetka, IL Community Development Department, this involved integrating scanned zoning variance documents with an existing GIS mapping application and using the application’s address search tool to locate the documents. These efforts involved working closely with the Village’s Geographic Information System (GIS) department to ensure that the scanned documents were properly linked to the correct locations in the village so they could be easily searched.

Technology can be used to assist local government in many different ways. For the Village of Winnetka, IL, their investment in technology includes a Geographic Information System (GIS) program that provides all village departments with maps, analysis results, and data that assists with day to day operations and future planning efforts. Traditionally, access to the village’s GIS data, and the ability to analyze it, has been limited to those who are trained on how to use a high end GIS software program, which can both cost prohibitive and technically challenging to implement as a tool for all village staff. However, with the development of a web-browser based GIS viewer application called MapOffice™, all staff now has the ability to view all GIS data collected by the village, as well as conduct basic analysis of certain data to gather more in-depth information about a particular assets or process.

Maintaining a record of building permit applications is important for local governments as both a historical reference for work that was authorized for a given project and as a reference in case the work that was completed is ever disputed. To make access to these applications easier for all departments, the Village of Winnetka, IL Community Development Department requested that the paper building permits they have on file be scanned into an electronic format. To assist with providing access to the scanned permit files, the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) department linked the permit documents to the spatial location they applied to and made those links available as part of the village’s internet-browser based mapping application.

Using technology to assist with police department operations is become more and more important in today’s world. From providing new safety devices to help protect officers to supplying comprehensive vehicle registration information during a traffic stop, the use of technology has made departments more prepared and, as a result, more efficient in completing their day to day tasks. For the Village of Winnetka, IL police department, integrating technology includes utilizing the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) program to perform basic mapping and advanced spatial analysis of department data. For example, to help better establish an incident’s timeline during a recent investigation, the department asked the village GIS staff to develop a map showing the different locations of an officer’s pursuit of a suspect from the beginning to the end of the event.

The primary responsibility of all local government public safety agencies is to understand the location and extent of their designated response coverage areas, especially when it comes to providing mutual aid support across municipal boundaries. In many cases, knowing this information before responding to an emergency call can make the difference between a response ending in success and a response ending in tragedy. For the Village of Winnetka, IL Fire department a recent change to their response coverage grid numbering system lead them to collaborate with the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) department to redesign the department fire grid map that is used both internally by department staff and provided to surrounding communities to assist with mutual aid support.

Seasonal operations planning is a process all municipalities, large and small, must deal with throughout the year. Whether it’s ordering salt for the winter months or flowers for the spring plantings, all municipalities are involved with planning out their process for providing seasonal services. For the Village of Winnetka Public Works department, snow removal has always been one of the primary services included in its winter operation plans. In past years, the snow removal maps used by the plow operators have been maintained in a Computer Aided Design (CAD) based system, which has proven difficult to update and maintain. In an effort to improve map maintenance and currency, the department asked the village’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS) department to assist in recreating them to both update the mapped routes and make the mapping process more efficient.

For local governments, updating and replacing components of publically funded services, such as utility systems and roads, is critical for maintaining the overall well being of the community and the happiness of its residents. One example of how a community can determine which component of a system may need to be replaced is by tracking breaks that occur within the water system mains. For the Village of Winnetka, IL Water and Electric Department, tracking this information is critical when developing a construction budget from year to year and for highlighting potential problem areas that may require future improvements. To assist with determining which water mains should be considered for replacement in the most recent budget year, the village Geographic Information System (GIS) department was asked to generate a map highlighting all the mains in the village that had recorded breaks over the past 25 years.

For local governments, updating and replacing components of publically funded services, such as utility systems and roads, is critical for maintaining the overall well being of the community and the happiness of its residents. One example of how a community can determine which component of a system may need to be replaced is by tracking breaks that occur within the water system mains. For the Village of Winnetka, IL Water and Electric Department, tracking this information is critical when developing a construction budget from year to year and for highlighting potential problem areas that may require future improvements. To assist with determining which water mains should be considered for replacement in the most recent budget year, the village Geographic Information System (GIS) department was asked to generate a map highlighting all the mains in the village that had recorded breaks over the past 25 years.

Any storm event that disrupts day to day operations can often spur local government to investigate solutions to help mitigate future problems. After a major emergency event that occurred on July 23rd 2011 caused significant flood damage to the Village of Winnetka, IL, the village’s Public Works Department began looking at options for improving its storm water utility system to help reduce the impacts of future flooding. As part of the investigative process, department staff is required to present all options under consideration to the general public as a way to show progress. To assist with these presentations, the village’s Geographic Information System (GIS) department was asked to create a map showing all project locations to help provide the public with a tool for visualizing the proposed improvements.

On July 23rd, 2011, the Chicago, IL metropolitan area was hit by a storm system that resulted in extensive damage across numerous communities. As a community that received heavy flooding damage and experienced utility management issues due to the intensity of the storm, the Village of Winnetka needed to track where flooding was being reported and the nature of each report to help get a village-wide view of the total damage. To assist with this effort, the village Geographic Information Systems (GIS) department was asked to store and manage the flooding location data and develop a series of maps showing different aspects of the damage accounts as needed for reporting and analysis.
The primary sources used to develop the damage assessment database were field checks by village staff and damage claims submitted to Cook County by the residents. Using these sources, an extensive list of flooding locations, and the nature of each flooding event, was compiled and made available for mapping. Some of the products generated from the data were a basic map showing flooded properties, a map showing properties with debris piles stacked on the curb, and a map showing the extent of the flooding in one of the hardest hit areas of the village.
By storing and managing this information in GIS, the village now has the ability to develop powerful visual tools for examining the impacts of the storm, assisting with the development of future mitigation strategies, and providing the village council with evidence of how extensive the damage was in an easy-to-understand format.

During the cleanup from damage caused by emergency events, such as severe storms or flooding, there are often numerous issues that a local government needs to deal with in order to successfully recover. After a recent storm that occurred on July 23rd, 2011, the Village of Winnetka, IL was hit hard by residential flooding and other water related problems. This forced the village’s Water and Electric Department to take an inventory of all properties in the village with electric meters installed in basements to help identify areas where restoring power service might be difficult in the future if that same property floods.

While it may not occur as part of the day to day operations, an unfortunate reality for all local governments is the need to coordinate response and cleanup efforts as the result of an emergency event, such a severe storm or other natural disaster. To assist with tracking reported incidents as the result of a recent severe weather event, the Village of Winnetka, IL used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to store and display the incident locations during the event, as well map their locations to assist with the extensive cleanup efforts after the event took place.

The Village of Winnetka, IL hosts numerous special events throughout the year, including a fireworks display during the Fourth of July holiday weekend. These types of events require the involvement and coordination of several village departments, including Public Works and the Police Department, and, often, outside agencies, such as the Winnetka Park District. To help improve the coordination and planning efforts between each group, the GIS (Geographic Information Systems) department developed several map products to assist with transferring event information more efficiently.

Most local governments have a council of elected community residents that help manage and vote on the policies that govern how the community operates. For the Village of Winnetka, as with any government, there is regular turnover in who is elected to sit on the acting council. After a recent election, village staff decided to use maps to help explain the operational role of each department to the new council members.

Responding to incidents involving motor vehicle accidents is a fundamental duty of all local government law enforcement agencies. Understanding which areas of a community are more likely to experience higher levels of traffic incidents provides a significant advantage to each department for implementing accident prevention measures that can help to make the community safer.

Residential and commercial development in flood-prone areas can be a challenge to manage for many local governments. In addition to dealing with residents or businesses for permitting, inspections, etc, the federal government is also involved to ensure all construction and documentation is compliment with regulations that limit what can and cannot be built. As part of the Community Rating System (CRS), a program that allows local municipalities to show that they’ve taken efforts to mitigate potential flood damage to properties build in a floodplain in order to help reduce residents’ flood insurance rates, the Village of Winnetka Public Works department decided to map out the locations of all permits issued in areas that are susceptible to flooding to help get a better idea of the amount of construction being conducted in these areas.

The Village of Winnetka hosts all sorts of special events throughout the year. These events require the involvement and coordination of numerous village departments, including Public Works, the Police Department, and, often, outside agencies. A common outside agency that works with the village is the Winnetka Park District, which recently proposed a village-wide bike tour to help promote the village as a scenic community. To help improve the coordination efforts, the GIS (Geographic Information System) department developed several mapping products to allow all those involved to transfer event information more efficiently.

Seasonal operations planning is a process all municipalities, large and small, must start working on as the seasons change. For the Village of Winnetka Public Works department, sidewalk snow removal has always been one of the primary services included in its winter operation plan. In past years, the snow removal area maps have been maintained in a CAD-based system, which is difficult to update and maintain. To help simplify the map update process and make it more efficient, the department asked the village’s GIS (Geographic Information System) department to recreate the maps and make them available for distribution to all plow operators.

A significant part of any local government’s economic vitality relates to property development and improvements that require a building permit. Permitting fees provide vital income and can help to increase department budgets and the potential for capital improvement spending. As part of an effort to better track permit applications and highlight trends over time, the Village of Winnetka Community Development department asked the village GIS department to develop a map product to display permit locations.

Managing utility assets is a critical function of local government and can often encompass a significant portion of a Public Works department’s yearly operating budget. A specific component of utility management is addressing sanitary sewer backup issues that can cause damage to residential and commercial properties by creating standing water or sewage in basements and other areas. To assist with analyzing recent sanitary backup complaints from residents, the Village of Winnetka used Geographic Information System (GIS) to compare each backup location to village designated sanitary system maintenance zones.

Every year, the Village of Winnetka Police Department provides additional security and crowd-control support for a local church’s annual rummage sale. The sale is held on the church grounds and affects parking and traffic patterns within in the adjacent area and several surrounding neighborhoods. The size of the event requires the involvement and coordination of numerous village departments, including Public Works and the Police Department. To help improve the coordination efforts, the GIS (Geographic Information System) department developed several mapping products to allow the departments to share event information more efficiently.

During an emergency event, knowing how a community is being impacted as a whole can be just as important as responding to an individual emergency call. Having an overall view of the event can provide emergency response personnel with a better idea of how wide-spread the problems are and reveal potential patterns that can lead to better management of the response efforts. To help maximize its ability to respond to a community-level emergency, the Village of Winnetka GIS department developed a process for showing staff-generated emergency information in a real-time mapping environment.

For many communities, the fall season is a busy time consisting of construction projects, landscaping contracts, and other operations that relate to the changing season. For the Village of Winnetka, this time of year means performing weekly leaf pickup along all the Village-owned streets as a service to Village residents. To assist the Public Works department with their yearly leaf collection budget, the GIS department was asked to provide the total Village-owned parkway area along these streets as a way to estimate the percentage of leaves being picked up that were coming from Village-owned trees versus trees on private property.

The Village of Winnetka hosts numerous special events over the course of a year and, for each event, the Police and Public Works departments are involved in providing operational support. These events range from parades to festivals and require a wide-range of supportive actions. These actions are assigned via an event orders sheet provided to each department that describes the extent of the event and where various elements of the event are occurring. However, in the order sheet format, it can be difficult for personnel to get an overall view of the event’s total operations. To assist with providing this comprehensive view for the Village’s Memorial Day parade, the GIS Department was asked to develop a mapping product that would help assigned personnel to be better informed about the overall event orders.

Keeping a utility system running at high capacity is a major component of local government operations. Coordinating maintenance, capital improvement projects, and every day operations can be a challenging task that requires numerous man-hours to run effectively. Having an accurate spatial inventory of utility system components helps a community perform these operations more efficiently by providing a quick reference tool for checking the physical location of a feature and providing vital attribute information such as manhole depth or pipe diameter. To assist with a recent sanitary system cleaning effort, the Village of Winnetka Public Works Department requested that the GIS Department develop a series of maps to help the field crews gain a better understanding of the system before going out into the field.

During an emergency event, the type of event, the extent of the area affected, and the number of issues occurring as a result of the event are just some of the factors that need to be processed, organized, and reviewed by local government staff to determine the most appropriate course of action. Perhaps the greatest challenge of any emergency response is controlling where information is coming from and which pieces of information are more critical than others. Using GIS (Geographic Information System) as a tool in all stages of the emergency management process brings a spatial component to the planning and implementation of an action plan, helping to visualize all relevant information for a more efficient and successful community response.

Having an accurate inventory of the components that make up a municipal utility system is very important to the overall success of a city or village maintaining that utility at a high performance level. While this type of inventory has traditionally involved descriptive text information regarding a particular utility system feature, with a robust GIS system that same inventory can now contain a spatial component. By adding this spatial aspect, the municipality can better track and maintain their capital investments and the overall integrity of the system. Recently, the Village of Winnetka took advantage of its GIS system to help develop an electric pole inventory for its Water and Electric department to use for future maintenance and analysis.

Garbage collection is an essential service provided by municipal government that, in many communities, has become ingrained in the weekly routine of community residents. While collecting garbage seems like a straight forward process, often there are weeks or months of planning that are necessary to determine pickup locations for a given route that are efficient in both time and resources. Recently, the Village of Winnetka Public Works department decided to reallocate their garbage collection pickup locations to help maximize the efficiency of each truck driver’s route. To assist with this, the Village GIS department provided support during both the planning and implementation stages of the project.

During the winter holiday seasons, local municipalities often will setup a series of decorations or lighting displays to celebrate the holidays and provide a fun attraction for the community’s residents. While the amount of decorations on display is mainly regulated by a community’ budget, some times these restrictions can come from a lack of existing space or resources for displaying or powering a certain decoration setup. For the Village of Winnetka, this was the case for a business district area located at the northern end of the Village. While many of the businesses and residents in this area wanted to have more lights displayed in the areas numerous trees, there were not sufficient power sources available to accommodate this request. To determine the best solution for this problem, the Public Works and Water and Electric departments used GIS to assist with the planning and mapping of numerous proposed scenarios.

Utility mapping is a critical function of any municipal GIS system to help support the daily workflows of various departments, including Public Works and Engineering. While most communities are only responsible for maintaining water and sewer utility systems, the Village of Winnetka includes an electric system as a component of their standard utility maintenance. By maintaining this complex system in GIS, the department has helped to streamline their electric system inventory and improve the efficiency of both the field crews and the office staff in locating system components.

Of all the services provided by local municipalities around the world, public safety is arguably the most recognizable and widely supported. Everyone wants to feel that they are safe and that someone will respond to assist them in the case of an emergency. The Village of Winnetka traditionally has provided fire, EMS, and police protection to its residences since it was established, however, over the years, these Village departments have started to provide service to additional areas immediately outside the village boundaries through a series of public service contracts. To assist with coordinating response efforts in these service agreement areas, the fire and police departments asked the village GIS department for assistance.

Capital improvement projects are essential for a local municipality to maintain a good quality of life for its residents. Resurfacing roads and replacing aging utility mains provide a more reliable infrastructure for the community and ensure that residents do not experience things such as uneven roads and interruptions in utility services. Recently, the Village of Winnetka used Geographic Information System (GIS) to help with the coordinating and planning of future capital projects between various village departments to reduce project duplication and maximize project overlap.

Special events, such as parades, concerts, and street fairs, require additional civil services from local government to ensure everything runs smoothly and efficiently. While all government departments are involved in the planning and execution of these events, the police department is responsible for enforcing city/village policies and ensuring that all participants are safe. To assist with their annual Fourth of July celebration, the Village of Winnetka Police Department started to using map products to provide more information to officers regarding the holiday’s planned events.

As the country’s utility infrastructure continues to age, many local governments will be faced with the task of updating or replacing deteriorating structures. Since this process can result in high costs for a community, many municipalities prefer to develop an infrastructure improvement plan to make sure the areas most in need get updated first. As part of the Village of Winnetka’s utility improvement plan, the water and electric department recently analyzed the structural integrity of village water mains by reviewing water main break incidents from the last 20 years.

Many local governments face the challenge of organizing decades worth of permit, building plan and zoning variance documents in a way that will allow employees to locate them if needed. Most municipalities have these paper documents stored in boxes, filing cabinets or in some other storage container that can be a burden to search through. The Village of Winnetka Community Development Department has recently attempted to reduce their amount of paper documents by scanning new zoning variance requests into a digital, PDF format.

The Village of Winnetka Fire Department recently utilized the Village’s Geographic Information System (GIS) to complete a community-wide fire hydrant flow rate review. Accurate flow rate information is critical to the department for knowing how much water pressure is available from a hydrant at a given location in the village.