City of Clovis Prepares to Host First GIS Day

City of Clovis’ Ian Paley working on a map in preparation for GIS Day. (Sarah Soghomonian/Clovis Roundup)

The City of Clovis is celebrating Geography Awareness Week with an event geared towards educating the public about Geographic Information System, which is a computer system used to capture, store, check and display data related to positions on the Earth’s surface.

GIS Day is taking place Wednesday, November 13 at City of Clovis Civic Center from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The public is invited to attend this free event, geared towards creating GIS awareness.

“Everyone uses it every day with their phones and they don’t even realize it,” said Stephanie Andersen, GIS Analyst for the City of Clovis. “Google, Bing, Apple, they all base their maps on what we provide them.”

(Courtesy of the City of Clovis)

Andersen has been part of Clovis’ GIS Department since 2002. She says she’s watched the department grow. Andersen, along with two other Fresno State Geography graduates, uses data from the planning, engineering and building departments to create Clovis’ GIS.

“I think that Clovis has a really good GIS,” Andersen said. “We want to educate people. I really want people to see what we do and how we do it.”

Not all cities create their own GIS. Many rely on consultants. In the City of Clovis 90 percent of their GIS work is done in house.

The November 13 event will give the city’s GIS department a chance to show off what they do and how it helps others, like the Police and Fire Departments, do their jobs better.

Maps will be on display in the Council Chambers and in the lobbies of Planning and Development Services, City Hall and Police and Fire Headquarters.

(Courtesy of the City of Clovis)

From 9 a.m. to Noon, police, fire and solid waste vehicles that use GIS will be on display. Representatives from those departments will be able to answer questions and show you how the mapping system is used to respond to calls and report to the right location.
From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. additional demonstrations featuring the Clovis Fire and Police Departments will occur. Clovis PD plans to demonstrate how drone technology uses GIS to help fight crime.

Students are also taking part in GIS Day through a Map-Making Contest. There are four divisions: Elementary, Intermediate, High School and College. One winner from each division will be awarded a one-year subscription to Esri’s ArcGIS for Personal Use program. The winning maps will also be displayed at GIS Day and online.

Students can draw their maps by hand or create them digitally. Any type of map is welcome. Examples include maps of a student’s school, home or neighborhood.

The deadline to enter is Friday, November 1 at 5 p.m. For a complete list of rules and instructions on how to enter visit CityOfClovis.com/government/map-contest-2019
More information about GIS Day can be found by calling (559) 324-2060.

Sarah Soghomonian is an Emmy Award winning journalist who has been telling the stories of the unique people and places of the Central Valley for nearly 15 years. She's a graduate of Fresno State's Mass Communications and Journalism Department and has worked at CBS47 and ValleyPBS. In addition to her work as a television producer, Sarah is a freelance journalist who's articles have appeared in many local newspapers and publications. A lifelong Valley resident, Sarah loves her community and wants to do her part to make it a better place. Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/SarahValleyTV/?ref=bookmarks