Residential buildable lands are any residentially-designated lands that are vacant or have development potential. Buildable land inventories are used as a planning tool for local jurisdictions to help manage growth and provide government facilities and services concurrent with growth. If unable to plan for projected growth, the facilities and services will be strained, becoming inadequate, and environmental resources will also be negatively impacted. Results of buildable land inventories are used to influence decisions about concurrency management, watershed management, zoning and subdivision regulations, public facilities and services, and preservation /conservation initiatives. Decision makers in Carroll County wanted to have an accurate and time effective way to determine how much buildable land was left in the county. Careful research of local ordinances and regulations was performed to determine what influences lot yield. GIS was used to model and calculate remaining buildable lands and potential lot yields on a parcel by parcel basis. The GIS model examined, integrated, and analyzed different Carroll County geospatial datasets to determine how many buildable lots were still remaining in Carroll County at the time of the study. GIS provides the tools necessary to analyze, in a timely and cost effective manner, how much buildable land still remains along with how many lots can be built on each parcel. The model can be easily adjusted to incorporate new regulations and updated datasets. Decision makers in Carroll County wanted to have an accurate and time effective way to determine how much buildable land was left in the county. Careful research of local ordinances and regulations was performed to determine what influences lot yield. GIS was used to model and calculate remaining buildable lands and potential lot yields on a parcel by parcel basis. The GIS model examined, integrated, and analyzed different Carroll County geospatial datasets to determine how many buildable lots were still remaining in Carroll County at the time of the study. GIS provides the tools necessary to analyze, in a timely and cost effective manner, how much buildable land still remains along with how many lots can be built on each parcel. The model can be easily adjusted to incorporate new regulations and updated datasets.
Adam Orenstein is a GIS Analyst for the Carroll County Department of Planning. He has several years experience in GIS application development and GIS project management. He earned B.A. degree in Geography from West Virginia University in 1998 and is now pursuing a Master's degree in Geography and Environmental Planning, specializing in GIS, from Towson University.