TECHnology
- Geoportal design and function reviews: Resource pages updates and new interface enhancements reflected on homepage
March 2026 Program Update
BTAA-GIN Releases Geodata Curation Plan
Cities update zoning boundaries, building footprints, and parcel lines constantly — but earlier versions are rarely retained. For researchers studying neighborhood change, housing policy, environmental exposure, or urban development, those overwritten datasets create permanent gaps in the historical record. When past versions disappear, so does the ability to understand how places evolve.
Research libraries have long been responsible for preserving access to information, and geospatial data is no exception. BTAA-GIN is extending that stewardship to municipal geodata.
In March, GIN published its Geodata Collection Curation Plan, outlining how versioned municipal datasets will be identified, accessioned, documented, and made persistently accessible. The plan builds on BTAA-GIN's paper, "Ephemeral Geodata: An Impending Digital Dark Age," which received the Journal of Map & Geography Libraries Best Paper of the Year Award in 2024.
BTAA-GIN is now applying this approach through partnerships with several cities, including Minneapolis, Columbus, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. A recently published case study with Philadelphia's CityGeo division illustrates the model in practice and demonstrates how libraries and municipalities can collaborate to preserve geospatial history for future scholarship.
Read more: Read the case study
BTAA-GIN Geodata Collection Strategic Plan 2023-2027
Program Activities
Committees
Community Engagement
- Reviewed upcoming blog features and updated the publishing calendar, shifting assignments from mandatory to voluntary participation.
- Evaluated potential new initiatives, including a GIN/Geoportal slide‑deck template, a LibGuide refresh, Lightning Talk topics, and opportunities to strengthen relationships with partner organizations.
Knowledge
- Discussed how best to align committee work with GIN strategic priorities
- Began planning a survey of the Program Team to see what research everyone is working on, planning, or interested in
Coordination
- Created new GIN workflow model and decision-tree, sought feedback and shared with larger Program team
Workgroups
Workgroups
Data Citation Work Group
- Continuing to test and get feedback on the tool in preparation for announcing at our Big Ten GIS Conference.
BTAA Geoportal
This month by the numbers
Top Google searches leading to the Geoportal
- illinois traffic cameras
- columbus school district map
- lorain county gis
- illinois dot cameras
- columbus ohio school district map
- franklin county lines
- franklin county school district map
- btaa geoportal
- what school district am i in
- carver county gis
Top internal search keywords
- Geology
- PLSS
- Sanborn
- index
- Terre Haute
- Michigan maps
- Parcel
- Archaeology
- Highways roads
- Hammon Ind
Collections
Total records as of March 2026: 116,498
Harvesting Activities
| Title | Records added | Records retired |
|---|---|---|
| 05d-01 Maps from UMN University Archives | 233 | 0 |
| edu.wisc c05b2df and 790aef7 commits | 61 | 10 |
| edu.wisc Commit d596db2 | 107 | 10 |
| edu.wisc commits d596db2 and bb5579e | 114 | 0 |
| 05-13 Maps from Minnesota Iron Range Research Center | 99 | 0 |
| 05a-01 Minnesota Geospatial CommonsQ1 2026 | 5 | 11 |
| 02a-01 Illinois Geospatial Clearinghouse ISGS March 2026 | 5 | 5 |
| Socrata data portals reharvest March 2026 | 3 | 23 |
| 99-1400 Humanitarian Data Exchanges | 315 | 9 |
| 08f-01 Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center Open Data | 365 | 1 |
| totals | 1307 | 84 |
Web Development
- UI/UX refinements on new BTAA Geoportal design. Continuing to complete backend search documentation. Configured new dev server for rapid prod deployments.