New public platform a one-stop shop for regional geospatial data

Waikato OneView displays all community related information like; walking tracks, facilities, and bylaws. Photo / Hamilton and Waikato Tourism

Waikato OneView is a new and innovative platform ideal for people or agencies seeking geospatial related data in the region.

The public platform merges data from seven councils to provide a unified and more comprehensive view of spatial information.

Waikato Local Authority Shared Services (WLASS) chief executive Kelvin French said over the past year, councils have worked together to deliver a product that is customer-centric and good for the community.

"Before OneView, geospatial information was limited to within the boundary of a territorial authority. In some instances, data across the different councils was inconsistent or unavailable, meaning people or agencies couldn't easily acquire all the data they needed," said Mr French.

"OneView provides a one-stop shop for councils' open GIS datasets. It includes water utilities and infrastructure, property boundaries and zones, community and recreation maps such as bike and walking tracks, and other community-related data."

The information is presented via a web map viewer and can be viewed, searched and downloaded in a variety of formats, complying with the Government's policy of making data widely accessible and available for reuse.

Waikato OneView features data from Waikato Regional Council as well as local councils Hamilton City, Waikato District, Thames-Coromandel, Waipā, Hauraki and South Waikato.

"It doesn't have information for all the Waikato region just yet, but the platform will continue to evolve as each council continues to update, add and further enhance the information available," said Mr French.

Waikato OneView is an extension of the Waikato Data Portal, the first of the region's geospatial collaboration projects giving the public easy access to councils' open datasets.

Check out Waikato OneView at oneview.waikatolass.co.nz.

Waikato Local Authority Shared Services was initially established to provide local authorities in the Waikato region with a vehicle to procure shared services.

Its key purpose has since evolved to drive meaningful collaboration between councils, improve customer service and performance, and reduce costs.