SQA Online Resource Center

COMMUNITY MAPPING PROJECT

What is the Community Mapping Project?

The Community Mapping Project is a Tri-County (Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Counties) collaborative effort to provide individuals, educators, businesses, governmental decision-makers with easy access to a user-friendly, comprehensive data base in a graphical/interactive format. We believe that decisions made based on the information provided by the map will positively affect purchasing habits, land development patterns and employment choices resulting in a more sustainable, environmental and economically stable, living community.

What type of information will be included on the Community Map?

Locations of Parks, School Districts, Libraries, "Green Businesses", Bike Paths, Recreational Areas/Facilities, Bus Routes, Fire Districts, Water Districts, Sewer Districts, Earthquake Faults, Areas subject to Flooding, Soil Types, Sensitive Flora and Fauna Habitats (Wetlands, Coastal areas, Grasslands, Redwood Forests), Watersheds, Agricultural Land, Zoning and General Plan designations, ...

Examples of uses of the Community Map.

A new UCSC student would like to rent a house that is on the bus line, near public tennis courts, and close to an organic food store. He/she could enter these three criteria and search for locations that satisfy these three conditions.
A planner/developer/Board of Supervisor(Politician) evaluates several possible locations for a large residential subdivision. He/she could discover potential problems from flood/earthquake zones, Agricultural lands or environmentally sensitive habitats; and search for properties that are close to large businesses to provide employment for the future residents.
A family interested in moving to the area would like to locate near a school so their children could walk to school and within 20 miles of a firm in the hi-tech field for jobs for the mother and father. They could search for these criteria and locate the neighborhoods that satisfy their needs.

How to access the Community Map.

The Community Map will be available to the public via public libraries and educational facilities(library and schools may pay a nominal fee). Businesses (Realtors, Developers, Marketing Firms) and local governmental agencies interested in the Community Map could pay an annual subscription fee and access the Community Map via the Internet.