Georgia Geospatial Conference

3:30pm-4:15pm
"Efficient Visualizations Tool for the California Transportation Planning Model by Applying Arc CityEngine": Helen Peng
3D visualization has been increasingly used in the planning process as an important tool to convey the plan and design information to decision makers and residents (DÖLLNER et al. 2006). The California transportation model integrates transportation, economic, demographic, and land use information to predict the land use change and exchange of goods and services across space and time. To demonstrate the visualization of typical land use changes, the project developed three scenarios, downtown urban area, suburban residential area, and rural area.
The traditional 3D creation process was usually time-consuming with labor intense. Arc CityEngine provides the fast creation and visualization of 3D cities through its unique 3D programming language. The programming method can create detailed 3D models in a large area for a short time. As well, it has the advantage of accumulating the geometry parameters, such as total floor area in a zone. For our purpose, it is useful to create 3D buildings in large zones and meet the target floor space quantities from the transportation model. The project has applied three software packages in model creation process, as ArcGIS, CityEngine and Google Earth. Python, the scripting language acts as a bridge interacting between software.
The 3D visualization project describes the transportation model outcome and the future land use change. It address more effectively important land use change and urban applications, as well helps to communicate with decision makers and citizens to know that will actually take place in the region. Arc CityEngine is suitable for the 3D project and provides a good tool to visualize the transportation model outcome.


4:15pm-5:00pm
"Assessing Urban Tree Cover in the City of Atlanta - A Baseline Canopy Study": Tony Giarrusso
Researchers at the Center for GIS and Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development at the Georgia Institute of Technology recently completed the first urban tree canopy assessement for the City of Atlanta. Using 2008 Quickbird satellite imagery acquired from Digital Globe inc. as input for traditional imagery classificationtechniques, the research team successfully created a high resolution, three class landcover dataset for the city. Tree and other land cover statistics were reported city-wide and across a number of smaller geographic areas, such as nieghborhoods, zoning districts, stream buffers, and watersheds. In addition to the descriptive statistics provided to the city, the project team created a city-wide potential planting index to be used as a supplement to current tree planting efforts. A interactive arcgisonline map showing project results is currently available for public consumption.

Project findings were generally positive with an City-wide estimate of 47.9% tree cover, which, when compared to 18 other US cities that have recently conducted urban tree canopy assessments, places the City of Atlanta as the most tree covered city in the nation. While this is a positive result, the distribution of tree cover across the city varies greatly, with a majority of trees located in single family residential neighborhoods outside of downtown atlanta.

This presentation will cover the following items:
1. Project need and background
2. Project methods
3. Project results
4. Disseminating project results via arcgisonline
5. Phase II - follow up studies