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Town GIS analyst urges creation of centralized GIS department to support public works, planning and emergency response
Summary
Town GIS Analyst Tim Corner told the council the town’s mapping and data tools are serving multiple departments and recommended forming a three-person GIS department (director, analyst, field tech) to scale asset management, addressing, flood analysis, drone mapping and public apps; manager said midyear funding will be sought.
Tim Corner, the town’s GIS analyst, presented a wide-ranging overview of how geographic information systems are used across Taos and recommended building a centralized GIS department at the Town Council workshop on July 21.
Corner described current uses — drone-based aerial mapping of events and the landfill, high-resolution ortho imagery, an online zoning-review map used by the public, addressing and 9‑1‑1 support, floodplain and dam-breach modeling, a lead-service-line inventory required by EPA rules, hydrant and asset inventories for the fire department, and tools for parks, events and emergency management.
Corner said the town now has 24 named GIS users across departments and two desktop GIS specialists (himself and a water operator), and that the operation increasingly delivers web-based tools that field staff and residents can use without specialized GIS training. He proposed a three-position structure: a GIS director to coordinate across departments; a GIS analyst to manage data and build applications; and a GIS field technician to collect data and support daily operations. "I would like to see a GIS department structure where you would have 3 employees: a director..., an analyst..., and a GIS field tech," Corner said.
Why it matters
Corner argued a centralized GIS team would make asset-management data (water lines, valves, meters, sewer manholes), emergency maps, addressing, and grant applications more reliable and easier to use. He highlighted the town’s lead-service-line work (an EPA requirement) as an example where GIS supported field data collection, office review, and public sharing.
Council and staff response
Mayor Pro Tem Fambro and several councilors praised the work. Manager Martinez said the council had already created GIS positions in an earlier resolution and that the administration would work to implement the separation and funding; Martinez told the council he expected to seek midyear budget support to fund the positions and said a formal update would return to council, likely in October. IT staff and Corner described a collaborative relationship; Corner said IT provides hardware and infrastructure while GIS delivers data and user tools.
Technical and procurement steps
Corner said the town’s current GIS license supports web mapping and some project management tools; a full multi-user enterprise system would require additional server infrastructure and IT coordination if the program scales. He cited FEMA flood maps, the New Mexico 9‑1‑1 program for addressing uploads, Esri/ArcGIS web tools, and EPA requirements for service-line inventories as the technical and regulatory frameworks he works with.
Manager Martinez told the council the budget process will seek funding and that a recruitment process is under way for a GIS field tech; she said the administration will present a reorganization plan and a midyear budget request to create a town-centric GIS department.
Ending
Council members expressed support and asked for a timeline and budget. Manager Martinez and Corner said they will return with an implementation plan and recruitment timeline; Martinez said she expects midyear funding would be requested to create the department.
