Latest Contributions by ChrisDonohue__GISP

If you have an Advanced ArcGIS license, here's most of the workflow.  However, note the very last step (#6) needs some work still. 1.  Select your parcel to do the notification from and save it as a separate feature class. 2.  Run Generate Near Table (note:  requires an Advanced ArcGIS license) Use a search radius like 1000ft to ensure it captures parcels but does not try to do all the distances to every parcel in your database. Change the default checkboxes:  Location should be checked, Angle should be checked, Find only closest feature should be unchecked. http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/analysis/generate-near-table.htm (this is the Pro help, but the ArcGIS Desktop help is the same). 3.  Run XY to Line using the table created in Generate Near Table as the input.  This will generate a line feature class. http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/data-management/xy-to-line.htm 4.  Create a feature class of just the Right of Way (ROW) polygons in the vicinity. 5.  Run Erase (Analysis) (requires an Advanced license) to remove the ROW from the lines, leaving only lines across parcels. http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/data-management/xy-to-line.htm 6.  First, calculate the distance of each line.  Then find the ones that are 500 feet long or less and save them off as a separate feature class.  Then use a Select by Location with this Line feature class to select the parcels that qualify.  *****However, the Select by Location did not successfully find parcels just across a Right of Way, so this last bit needs work.***** (somehow part of the line is getting dropped, so of course there is nothing to use for a selection). There may be a few other kinks to work out, but I think this process would work.  Once it is workable, one could probably use Modelbuilder to automate it, or even better, Python.  For the latter, we'd need some of the experts in Python to weigh in (not me). Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

A couple of follow-up questions: Will an actual buffer line need to be created (for later depiction) or is it sufficient to just select the parcels within 500' (without counting ROW crossed) without showing the buffer line? Does the process need to be automated? Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Some ideas: ESRI Local Government Information Model Public Notification Tool.  I have not used this, but it may be worth looking into. http://solutions.arcgis.com/local-government/help/public-notification/ If the goal is indeed to traverse 500 feet out only accumulating distance across parcels (ie the distance across ROW does not count), I'll throw out some preliminary workflow ideas (untested) on how it may be possible to solve that.  Note that these will need to be fleshed out a bit and they would be an interesting challenge for someone to implement (i.e. not a simple solution quickly done): If one has access to the Spatial Analyst Extension, create a Cost Allocation or Euclidean Distance.  Make ROW zero and parcels a value of 1.  Once the distance surface equivalent to 500feet is found, convert from raster back to vector and do the parcel selections.   http://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/10.3/tools/spatial-analyst-toolbox/understanding-euclidean-distance-analysis.htm Use Near or Generate Near Table, then construct a line based on the angle and distance, then Erase from the line the ROW polygons, then sum the line segments total distance and see if it is 500 feet or less.  A Python process to do all this automatically for all the polygons in an area around a selected polygon would be optimal. http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/analysis/near.htm http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/analysis/generate-near-table.htm http://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/tool-reference/analysis/erase.htm Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Just to confirm, is the goal to totally prevent U-Turns at the curb?  Or is the goal to make U-Turns at the curb expensive to implement, so they are other routing is chosen in preference (but U-Turns could at the curb could still occur sometimes)? Which version of ArcGIS are you using? Also, a suggestion.  If you have a modern version of ArcGIS, see if one of these turn rules may better fit what you need: http://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/latest/extensions/network-analyst/u-turn-policies.htm Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

My very first thought would be to do it the way you said you did it in the past.  I.e,. buffer the selected polygon 500 feet and then find all the parcels that intersect that.  With this process the intersected ones would become the ones you need to notify. But after re-reading your question I think what is going on is that you are saying the selected parcel needs to be buffered 500' and that distance needs to exclude from the measurement any ROW traversed as part of the 500 foot distance part.  In other words, going away from the selected parcel we start to measure across parcels but whenever we traverse a ROW we stop increasing the measurement and only continue it once we are traversing parcels again.  So a parcel 590 feet away from your selected parcel would be notified it in the traverse to it a 100 foot ROW was crossed (which does not count towards the 500 ft notification distance).  In short, it is not a simple 500 foot buffer to solve this.  So the goal will be to find a process that measures 500 feet out from a polygon to find all other non-ROW polygons by intentionally excluding from the 500ft distance any ROW polygons crossed. Can you confirm if I theorized this correctly?  If this is the case I don't immediately know the answer to this, but am sure with the talent on GeoNet we can find a solution.  Let me know if I got the issue correct and/or if there is another aspect to it. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

A few questions to help clarify the issue: Does your organization have Right-of-Way (ROW) polygons stored either in a parcel layer or a regular feature class? Which software are you using to accomplish this?  ArcGIS?  ArcGIS Online?  Another? What version of the software?  Is it a specific tool/process that already exists that you are encontering this issue with (like something from the Local Government Information Model (LGIM)) or is this a brand new set of functionality you want to create? Based on your CIty Code, what is the basis of where the buffer starts?  Is it a parcel boundary and then 500 feet out, the center of a parcel and then 500 feet out, or another basis? Our city uses a parcel layer for public notifications that has all the ROW stripped out prior to running the buffers.  However, that said, I've noticed other municipalities have a different combination of data and process.  So I guess solving this comes down to "what have you got to work with" and then "how do you want to get there given what is available." Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

I don't know if he is on right now, but I bet Dan_Patterson might have some ideas. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Watershed may be the way to go instead of Basins.  However, be aware that one will first need to process the DEM first to create a "Depressionless" DEM, then run several processes to come up with the inputs for Watershed.  In other words, there are several processes to do before running Watershed.  Avoid the temptation to skip some steps, as this will lead to less than desirable results. ArcGIS Help (10.2, 10.2.1, and 10.2.2) -Deriving Runoff Characteristics ArcGIS Help (10.2, 10.2.1, and 10.2.2) - Watershed (Spatial Analyst) Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

One thing to try would be setting a Snap Raster in the Environment Settings when running a raster geoprocessing tool: Tools that honor the Snap Raster environment will adjust the extent of output rasters so that they match the cell alignment of the specified snap raster. A Snap Raster is typically used where inputs to tools: Have different cell alignments Have different cell resolutions Have different coordinate systems Are features Snap Raster (Environment setting)—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

To expand on what Duncan Hornby suggested: Iterators allow Modelbuilder to repeat the same process multiple times, but with a different input each time. ArcGIS Desktop - Examples of Modelbuilder Iterators In-line Variable Substitution allows one to collect the input filename as it is iterated and then use that as part of the output file name so one has distinct outputs for all iterator runs. ArcGIS Help (10.2, 10.2.1, and 10.2.2) - Examples of In-line Variable Substitution Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Joe Borgione  Not to hijack the thread, but just out of curiosity do you have a workflow where you do editing in a File Geodatabase (copy of the Default feature class(es) that need to be edited), then use that to update Default in SDE?  I.E. instead of using Versioning? Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Given the complexity of SDE, it may be worth a call to ESRI Support to get a perspective on your particular setup and the issues you are having. Esri Support Contact Tech Support  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Go with what Joe Borgione said.  Learning about how SDE works will be of great aid.  That said, I will admit it doesn't seem to be the easiest part of GIS to try to figure out, so if parts of it seem arcane, that is a pretty normal response.  Classes in SDE are hard to come by and there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of reading material around that explains it to beginners.  Luckily, we have old farts experienced SDE Administrators like Joe to help explain it.  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

There are several factors that come into play when designing an Enterprise Geodatabase setup, with tradeoffs for each design. Here's two of them (from a non-expert's perspective). One of the simplest designs is generally called Direct Editing (they call it Concurrent Editing in the link below).  In other words, Editors directly edit the Production Data (commonly called Default).   Changes are immediate to the production data.  I hear it is easy to set up SDE this way, but also easy for data to get inadvertantly modified.  Also, with this setup some processes will lock out users while there are being run. Another common design is generally called Default Protected (called Multiple Projects in the link below)  In this case no one can edit the Production Data (Default) directly.  Instead, a child copy (version) is made of the Production database, which is then edited.  This is what we use.  It controls who has access to change the data and helps prevent conflicts.  Changes are made to the Version, but until it is Posted the Production database (default) is not updated.  This delay also allows for an opportunity to QC the data to double-check it before Posting to the Production Data (Default). Version scenarios—ArcGIS Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  As to how to tell which design you have, I do not know.  Hopefully some of the SDE Admin types will read this and reply.  I suspect their are Administrative tools will quickly reveal the setup you have.  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more