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GIS manager proposes 'Flow Forward' waterline mapping; water boards raise security concerns
Summary
GIS manager Brian Price proposed a countywide Flow Forward waterline GIS dataset to support decision-making for commissioners, EMA, highway planning and economic development; water-system managers expressed data-security concerns and asked for limited, secure sharing and in-person outreach before providing utility maps.
Brian Price, St. Clair County's GIS manager, outlined a "Flow Forward" initiative to compile countywide waterline infrastructure into a secure GIS resource for county decision-making, economic-development presentations, emergency management and highway planning.
Price said the project aims to give commissioners and staff a single operational view to support grant applications and response planning, but several water-system managers have resisted sharing detailed utility maps over security concerns. "There's reason for us to protect this from a security standpoint," one commissioner said; Price proposed a secure, limited-access implementation and face-to-face briefings to build trust with water boards before ingesting their data.
Price also noted that better mapping would support grant and direct-appropriation requests by providing the demographic and infrastructure data that federal funders often require. "If you go to DC looking for money for a water system in your district, it would be good if they could go before the elected official staff...and say here's what low-to-moderate income percentage this meets," a commissioner said, describing how mapped data can strengthen funding applications.
Commissioners asked staff to meet with water managers, the highway department and EMA representatives to refine the proposal and address security and governance questions. Price said he would prepare secure-sharing language and pursue data-sharing agreements where feasible.
Next steps: staff will hold stakeholder meetings, prepare data-sharing agreements addressing security concerns, and then proceed with a secure, limited rollout for the four intended uses: commission decision-making, economic development, EMA operational picture and highway planning.
