Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Closeups will let responders know exactly where they're headed

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2003 06:39:05 -0400

Article Last Updated: Monday, July 28, 2003 - 11:55:14 AM EST

Database of aerial shots may aid public
safety

Closeups will let responders know exactly where they're headed

By WENDI HIMMELRIGHT Dispatch/Sunday News

A bird's-eye view of the county, with close-up shots of
about half the area, will be available to law enforcement,
assessment and other officials by the end of the year.

The York County commissioners approved a $137,550
contract last week with Pictometry International Corp. of Rochester, N.Y., to
take the aerial photos.

Pictometry will fly over the county in a small Cessna plane this autumn, after
the leaves fall off the trees. A camera attached to the bottom of the plane will
take pictures of the entire county, from a 5,000-foot elevation, said Dan
Pennacchia, senior vice-president of sales and marketing. Then,
"neighborhood shots" will be taken from around 2,000 feet.

The pictures will be processed into a software package that will allow users to
point and click on a map or enter an address for any location in the county.
Usually, three to 12 images of a specific site will correspond to every request,
Pennacchia said.

The company's Web site says users can have "actual imagery of every square
foot of their area from as many as 12 different views."

The close-up pictures will cover densely populated neighborhoods and areas
with schools and power plants, said Al Raniero, director of the county's
information services department.

Municipalities can pay extra to have more detailed pictures taken.
Springettsbury Township Police Chief David Eshbach said it would cost
Springettsbury about $4,000 to request enhanced shots of the entire
municipality.

Police tool: The most common application probably will be for law enforcement
officers and emergency responders, Raniero said. Pennacchia said emergency
responders used enhanced pictures of the Pentagon when responding to the
Sept. 11 terrorist attack.

Eshbach said the images will be accessible on the department's mobile
computers, so police officers can get a visual look at an address and its
surrounding neigh- borhood when they answer a call.

Officers use the mobile computers to check driver's license, warrants and
criminal backgrounds.

The enhanced shots will give tactical strike units a visual advantage in a
hostage situation, and 911 dispatchers can describe a rear entrance to
firefighters at a blaze with entrapment, Raniero said.

"It's a great tool that is taking us into the next millennium," Eshbach said. "We
have to use technology to our advantage and work smarter, not harder."

The relatively new technology "has tremendous applications for all public
safety agencies," said Penn Township Police Chief Sam Gilbert, also president
of the York County Chiefs of Police Association.

Future uses: Raniero said the pictures can over be overlaid with the county's
and other municipalities' GIS maps and will be compatible with a planned
Computer-Aided-Dispatching system for the 911 center.

The GIS maps show a variety of geological and manmade features, such as
wetlands and street center lines; the number of layers vary among
municipalities.

The proposed CAD system will allow 911 dispatchers to submit call information
to laptops in emergency vehicles rather than talking on the radio; and will
analyze the locations of both the emergency and emergency personnel, and
recommend the best unit to respond.

With pictometry's accuracy, municipalities will be able to use pictures to plan
for and propose new roads; the assessment office will be able to verify
adherence to Clean and Green development restrictions on farmland; and the
planning commission will be able to see regions where development is
proposed.

A grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency will
cover $103,000 of the cost, Raniero said, with other county agencies covering
the difference. The grant will be applied to the first round of photography and
to an update in two years. Subsequent updates will be an additional expense.

http://www.yorkdispatch.com/Stories/0,1413,138~10023~1538126,00.html

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2003 06:55:50 -0400

Another waste of money......... several bankrupt telecom companies auctioned 3D  aerial data for the entire state of
NY (excellent detail) for less than $10K ( they paid almost $1M in  late 2002 right before they went chap 11) The new
buyer converted the data using ERDAS Stereo Analyst and EVIEW for use with ARCVIEW and other GIS programs. He has made
his money 10X over.