Commissioners consider funding for county ArcGIS Enterprise migration; one‑time ask roughly $26,100 plus $18,000 kick‑start

Whitley County staff asked the Redevelopment Commission to consider contributing to a one‑time, countywide migration to ArcGIS Enterprise, arguing the change would improve reliability and give departments better access to dashboards and field mapping.

The staff presentation outlined two primary costs: about $26,100 for the Enterprise core and roughly $18,000 for a system “kick‑start” that includes system architecture and setup. Staff said multiple departments — emergency management, engineering, planning and GIS — support the move because Enterprise makes it easier to share and consume authoritative data and reduces outages tied to chained REST services that currently populate the county’s public mapping site (Beacon).

Commissioners discussed funding approaches and emphasized that any RDC (TIF) contribution should be demonstrably tied to the TIF’s beneficiaries — for example, an allocation based on TIF area, parcel count or assessed valuation — rather than a general fund transfer. Staff said licensing would be covered in the operating budget but the quoted upfront cost was an unexpected capital charge and asked the RDC for a one‑time contribution option. Commissioners asked staff to return at the next meeting with specific contribution proposals and a breakdown that shows which departments committed funds and how much of each department’s work would benefit TIF districts.

Next steps: staff will develop one or more allocation scenarios (percentages or formulas tied to area/valuation) and present detailed cost options at the next commission meeting.