ArcGIS Parcel Data Model

ArcGIS Data Models

ArcGIS
Parcel
Data Model
Version 1
Nancy von Meyer, Fairview Industries
Scott Oppmann, Oakland County MI
Steve Grise, ESRI Redlands, CA
Wayne Hewitt, ESRI Redlands, CA

This document provides an introduction to the

ArcGIS Parcel Data Model. At this point it is a
conceptual model that is being used to support
the development of sample databases and
further refinement of the model. It is also being
used in the development of post-8.1 ArcGIS
capabilities for parcel users.

July 2001

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 ArcGIS Parcel Data Model

Table of Contents
1) Introduction
2) Parcel Mapping Methods
2.1) Cartographic Constructions
2.2) Computations
2.3) Adjustments
2.4) Applying the Parcel Mapping Methods
3) Parcel Model Contents
3.1) Ownership Parcels
3.2) Encumbrances
3.3) Separated Rights
3.4) Feature Classes
3.5) Historical Parcels
4) Survey Frameworks
4.1) Simultaneous Conveyances
4.2) Public Land Survey System
4.3) Feature Classes
5) Tax Parcels
5.1) Tax Assessment
5.2) Tax Bills
5.3) Tax Mapping
5.4) Feature Classes
6) Related uses for Parcel Information
6.1) Site Addressing
6.2) Regulated Uses and Restrictions
6.3) Administrative Boundaries
6.4) Feature Classes
7) Corners and Boundaries
7.1) Corners
7.2) Boundaries
7.3) Feature Classes
8) Geodatabase Overview for Parcel Users
8.1) Objects
8.2) Features
8.3) Feature Datasets
8.4) Topological Features in the ArcGIS Parcel Model
8.5) Relationships

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge Clint Brown and Scott Morehouse for their support and
encouragement of a land records data model for the ArcGIS technology.

Thanks to the people who reviewed drafts and provided comments and input on the data
model and supporting requirements. We know that their organizations have made time
for them to participate and contribute and we are grateful for their efforts and
contributions.

Dean Anderson, Cathy Appleton, Tom Bushey, Rick Breckenridge, Anita

Campbell, Adam Chadwick, Richard Clement, Peter Croswell, Diann Danielsen,
Stuart Davis, Teresa Di Gioia, Neil Duxbury, Bob Earle, Shoreh Elhami, Fran
Evanisko, Roberto A. Figueroa, Gina Funicelli, Arvind Ganesan, Bob Gaspirc,
Susan Higashi, David Horwood, Stewart Kirkpatrick, Mike Koutnik, Jay
Krafthefer, Jim LeMieux, Zsolt Nagy, David E. O'Hara, Penny Peters, Anne
Payne, Milo Robinson, Luke Savage, Brad Stump, Greg Tudor and Paul H.
Vastag, and Gary Waters

We also acknowledge the support and reviews of the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) Cadastral Surveyors, especially Dennis McKay and Paul Lukacovic, for review
and cross walk to related design efforts and the National Integrated Land System (NILS)
staff including Leslie Cone, Richard Dickman, Barb Kett, Roy King and Ginny Pyles.

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Preface

This document describes a conceptual data model for parcel land records
information in the ArcGIS technology. It is a starting point for the development of parcel
level management and supporting functionality in the ArcGIS environment.

The descriptions in this model start with general parcel mapping concepts and
move to more complex descriptions of how to apply the idiosyncrasies of measurement to
parcel mapping in the ArcGIS model. We describe the basic components and tenets of
parcel mapping that served as a basis for the design. An overview of the content of the
model is then presented by introducing the parcel feature classes. The underlying
frameworks for legal descriptions and hence parcel maps are then described in terms of
the ArcGIS model. The heart of the ArcGIS Parcel Model is described in these sections,
Sections 2, 3, and 4.

The application of the model for tax mapping and land use is presented to
demonstrated how the principles of the ArcGIS model can be used in organizations.
Sections 5 and 6 address these topics.

The more complex objects related to corners, boundaries, and measurement

sciences are described in Section 7. These topics may be critical to organizations that are
working with coordinate geometry and least squares analysis as a part of their parcel
maintenance. Section 8 presents a summary of the ArcGIS Object concepts for parcel
mappers. Some readers may want to begin with this section to gain a familiarity with the
object design terms. A more complete description of object design principles and their
application in the ArcGIS environment can be found in other documents.

The authors encourage parcel managers and other GIS professionals to engage in
discussions on the use and application of this and other ArcGIS models through online
resources at http://www.esri.com/arconline.

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1. Introduction

Many organizations and government agencies are dealing with serious decisions
on challenges related to resource management, cultural equality, environmental balance,
and development activities that require accurate and credible information. To address
these issues adequately, there is a fundamental importance in the collection, integration,
maintenance and distribution of digital geographic data representing land ownership, land
subdivisions and other related information. Much of the data supporting land related
decisions are tied to land ownership and parcels. Beyond this, many decisions ultimately
depend on who owns the land. To serve this need ESRI and its customers and partners
have initiated a parcel data design in the ArcGIS environment.

The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model accommodates the varied applications and parcel
definitions using an open and flexible object-based data model. The object approach
supports a continuous range of implementation scenarios from the most basic to complex.
As examples, parcels may be represented as property tax parcels with graphics linked to a
tax roll or the land ownership may be a complete legal record of boundary, owners and
documents.
The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model captures the collective experience gained from
over 20 years of managing parcels using GIS technology. While the model is general and
flexible, the unique needs of a variety of parcel management users have been addressed
in the design process. As examples, parcel maintenance staff can track multiple bearings
and distances for boundary lines; real property managers can attach value and use
attributes to tax parcel polygons; and land planners can analyze new development
proposals and historical land ownership patterns.
The purpose of the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model is to describe parcel information to
support local government and private sector decision-making. Parcel managers and GIS
professionals can use the model as a starting point for defining parcel information in the
ArcGIS environment and plan for migration strategies from current data designs to the
new object environment. Decision makers will be able to apply the outcome of the model
to integrate land ownership information with other data. Land and GIS professionals will
be able to apply the definitions and structure of the model to find consistent and
representative parcel information for data distribution. The authors and ESRI encourage
all decision makers and GIS professionals to engage in a coordinated effort that will lead
to standardized best practices and land record modernization as well as a solid foundation
of digital land records and parcel infrastructure that will carry us into the future.

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2. Parcel Mapping Methods

Parcel mapping is the heart of most local government geographic information
systems. There are nearly as many parcel mapping methods and standards as there are
parcel mapping jurisdictions.
[Parcel maps] can be created from a wide range of approaches, beginning with
digitizing existing tax maps (inexpensive and fast but yielding a low accuracy),
and concluding with field resurveys of all ownership parcels (highly accurate but
slow and expensive). Typically, parcel maps are produced somewhere along this
continuum, according to the compromises that are considered to be allowable for
the application. Dale, 1988
Because of this wide range of implementation scenarios the adage that “standards
are great, everyone should have one” often prevails for parcel mapping. Many parcel
mapping standard variations deal with parcel map presentation, including things like
annotation style and placement, line widths and types, and map sheet style and size.
Others deal with construction method, accuracy, source documents, and certification of
who can maintain the maps.
Although there are many approaches to parcel mapping and a plethora of
requirements, there are three basic methods used to produce digital parcel maps:
cartographic constructions, computations, and adjustments. The parcel maps and
associated databases resulting from these three parcel mapping methods have different
characteristics.
All three parcel mapping methods have annotation requirements. The migration
and management of annotation is often critical to the success of parcel management. The
look and feel and presentation of the parcel information is essential to generating credible
and useable hard copy output and digital display. This model does not address
presentation design. However, the data required to support typical parcel annotation is
included in the features and objects. The tools for placement and presentation will be
developed as a part of the core ArcGIS tool set.
In the case of parcel mapping the annotation for boundaries is often the legal
boundary distance and source information for that distance. This means that the annotated
distance may not be the distance computed from the GIS and may instead be distance as
officially recorded. The boundary feature class, discussed in Section 7, contains the
legally recorded attributes. These attributes can be used for annotation.
Parcel annotation may also include: the angles between lines, the parcel tax
number, lot number, subdivision name and the owner’s name for the parcel. These
elements are included in the feature class attributes. Jurisdictions may add other
attributes to support presentation design and hard copy output.
The over riding theme is that annotation is stored as attributes of features and
objects for most parcel data. ArcGIS has an annotation feature class that can be used to
store and manage special annotation information. In addition ArcGIS provides for
feature classes to support land hooks and other hard copy cartographic items.

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2.1 Cartographic Constructions

Cartographic constructions are map-based editing tasks like closing polygons,
extending lines, snapping to existing geometry, and following or copying a line from
another map. Boundaries from cartographic tools might be sketched in a manner that
provides a spatial inventory of the parcels, placing them in correct relation to each other,
but not focusing on having each boundary reflect its recorded length or direction. In this
case a boundary can be considered “placed” since it may reflect the correct relative
location of boundaries but not the exact absolute positioning of the boundary.
2.2 Computations
Computations have a set of rules and are repeatable from operator to operator.
The most commonly used parcel computation tool is coordinate geometry. Boundaries
constructed from computations are rule based. In these cases, the rules of construction
need to be carried with the boundary in order to repeat the computation. Typically
computed boundaries are generated from the results of surveys expressed on deeds and
plats. As examples, computing a parcel boundary from distances and directions and calls
in a deed, computing the smaller subdivisions (under one sixteenth) of Public Land
Survey System (PLSS) sections from a set of subdivision rules, finding new points from
distance-distance intersections or boundaries defined as a distance from an existing line,
such as 300 feet east of a west boundary.
2.3 Adjustments
Adjustments are based on known and established algorithms that are repeatable
from one operator to another. Adjustments work with the measurements and are
mathematically based. Land surveyors often use adjustments like least squares analysis
for field observed measurements. Adjusting traverses by closing, typically to establish
whether a traverse meets statutory requirements, like one part in 3,000 or using the
compass rule are another examples of parcel adjustments.
Adjusted boundaries are based on measurements. Measured or measurement
based boundaries are typically collected by survey measurement. In these cases the
quality of the measurements defining the parcels are known, a statistical estimate of
positional quality can be determined, and adjustments can be re-run when better
information is added.
2.4 Applying the Parcel Mapping Methods
Most jurisdictions use a combination of parcel mapping methods to produce and
maintain parcel maps and related parcel information. For example, initially boundaries
might be computed using coordinate geometry applied to deed descriptions and plats.
The results of this computation might be cartographically fit into the existing parcel
information. Placing a line to close a parcel or capturing a parcel boundary by heads up
digitizing from a digital orthophoto might enhance uncertain boundary descriptions. The
underlying framework for the parcel map might be generated by observations from the
global positioning system (GPS) and traditional line of sight based survey measurements.
For example PLSS section corners, subdivision exteriors and road centerlines might be
accurately surveyed and positioned as a reference for successive mapping.

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The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model accommodates all three methods of construction.
A jurisdiction can settle on one method or use a combination of methods. It will also be
possible to migrate from one method to another. For example a jurisdiction could start
with a parcel map constructed by placing lines cartographically and then migrate to a
computational or measurement approach. The annotation from the cartographic
placement can be preserved or persisted as the methods of construction migrate.

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3. Parcels
A land parcel has many meanings in different organizations, disciplines, and
situations. From a parcel mapping perspective, local governments frequently use property
tax parcels as the basis for parcel management. Other organizations begin parcel mapping
with an ownership parcel defined by the official Register of Deed records. Still others use
zoning, land use, mineral rights or farmland conservation as the basis for parcel mapping.
Depending on the business perspective, parcels are many things to many people.
Therefore, three features define parcels in the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model. These
are ownership, encumbrances, and separated rights. These are the core of the parcel data
model because these three features are the basic parcel building blocks and can be used to
support the varied definitions of land parcel. These three features are each represented as
polygons in the ArcGIS model.
3.1 Ownership Parcels

The simplest and broadest definition of a parcel is:

A parcel is a unit of real property with rights and interests (Moyer and
Fisher, 1973)
The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) expanded this definition slightly:
A parcel is a single cadastral unit, which is the spatial extent of the past,
present, and future rights and interests in real property (FGDC, 1999)

Both of these definitions portray the parcel as a set of rights and interests. This is
because land ownership parcels are not as simple as they may appear at first glance.

Although we speak of "owning" land, land in fact cannot be owned. It is

the rights to use the land that are owned or held. Over time, rights and
interests in land have passed from groups, or society, to individuals. These
rights are conceptualized as a "bundle of sticks". (Danielsen ,1993).

The sets of rights and interests individuals, organizations or agencies hold define
the uses and benefits that owner can enjoy.

The collection of rights pertaining to any one land parcel may be likened
to a bundle of sticks. From time to time the sticks may vary in number
(representing the number of rights), in thickness (representing the size or
'quantum' of each right), and in length (representing the duration of each
right). Sometimes the whole bundle may be held by one person or it may
be held by a group of persons such as a company or a family or clan or
tribe, but very often separate sticks are held by different persons. Sticks
out of the bundle can be acquired in different ways and held for different
periods, but the ownership of the land is not itself one of the sticks; it must
be regarded as a vessel or container for the bundle, the owner being the

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person (individual or corporate) who has the right to give out the sticks...
(Simpson, 1976)

Figure 1 illustrates the bundle of sticks of rights and ownership in land.

Figure 1 – Rights in Land as a Bundle of Sticks (Epstein and Brown, 1990)

The ownership parcels in the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model represent the surface
ownership parcels. The specific set of rights and interest held in the surface are described
in feature attributes and related objects. The mineral estate or subsurface ownership and
overhead air rights are described in the separated rights. Easements across the land are
represented in encumbrances.
The ownership parcels are non-overlapping polygons. This means they are a continuous
non-overlapping coverage of the area being mapped. The Ownership feature is
characterized as:

• Continuous – Land ownership is continuous. All land has ownership. The exact
name of the owner may not be known. The exact spatial extent of ownership may
not be known, but all land area has continuous ownership. There may be conflicts

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in ownership, but this does not negate that the ownership is intended to be
continuous.

• Non overlapping –All land has a single set of current owners. This is similar to
the non-overlapping characteristic. If the surface ownership appears to be in
conflict it may be an error in a legal description or it could be an area of
ownership conflict or uncertainty.

Conflicts in "ownership" results (a) where two parties are given title to the
same land or (b) where one party has title and another has possession or
(c) where descriptions are ambiguous. (Brown, 1969)

Continuous and Non-Overlapping

How can ownership parcels be non-overlapping when it is apparent that legal

descriptions often create apparent overlaps or leave gaps? Figure 2 illustrates three (3)
ownership parcels, parcel A, parcel B, and parcel C.

Parcel
A

Parcel
B
Parcel
C

Overlap
Gap

Figure 2 – Ownership Parcel Gaps and Overlaps

These three parcels have an overlap between Parcels A and B and a gap between
parcels B and C. The overlap and gap may due to ambiguous legal descriptions or
incorrect mapping representation. Either way, this situation results in five ownership
parcel polygons in the GIS. The polygon shaded red in Figure 2 may be coded as a gap
or unknown ownership and the polygon shaded yellow may be coded as an overlap or
conflict. Alternatively the shaded areas may be assigned to one of the adjoining owners.
These are decisions that each jurisdiction will need to make in their parcel mapping
programs. The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model accommodates a wide variety of solutions to
this situation.

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Condominiums

Many jurisdictions have condominiums or other structures that can form common
interest areas and three-dimensional surfaces with different owners on different levels of
the structures.

A condominium is a separate system of ownership of individual units in a multiple

unit building. A single real property parcel with all the unit owners having a
right in common to use the common elements with separate ownership confined to
the individual units, which are serially designated. The condominium concept
was not rooted in English common law and most condominiums in the US are
formed in accordance with specific state enabling statutes. A condominium is an
estate in real property consisting of an undivided interest in common in a portion
of the parcel of real property together with separate interest in a space in a
residential, industrial, or commercial building on such real property such as an
apartment, office or store. (Black, 1991)

In some jurisdictions condominiums may look the same as subdivision plats with the
units laid out as if they were lots and the common elements looking like rights of way
and out lots as shown in the image on the left in Figure 3. Other condominiums are
stacked or vertical parcels that come into play when the condominium is a building or
structure, as shown in the image on the right in Figure 3.

Figure 3 - Two Types of Condominiums

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There are two special cases with condominiums, common elements and unit ownership

Common Elements

In many jurisdictions the values and assessments of the common elements are
prorated over the individual ownership parcels in the condominium, but common
elements may also be mapped, assessed, and managed separately. Common elements
may be assigned to the condominium owners as a group, the condominium association, a
developer that is managing the common elements. The values and assessment on
common elements may be assigned to the individual units or the common elements may
be exempt from assessment and taxes.

The decision of whether to create a separate ownership polygon for the common
elements or manage the condominium as a single polygon depends on the level of detail
and parcel maintenance the jurisdiction wants to employ.

Unit Ownership

The units or buildings in the condominium are part of the ownership parcels with
a vertical aspect and are called vertical parcels in the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model.

F
F

Figure 4 – Vertical Parcels

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Figure 4 illustrates a vertical parcel that is a condominium building with

condominium unit F that is on three separate floors. Unit F is connected by common
elements, such as stairways and elevators. The common elements appear as "holes" or
gaps through the elements of parcel F. The common elements provide access to the
parcels in the vertical condominium similar to the way a right of way provides access to
more traditional "flat" parcels.
In the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model there are several ways to model or represent
vertical parcels;
• a single outline polygon pointing to multiple parcel records,
• a single outline polygon pointing to another series of polygons that represent
the levels or floor, or
• a single outline polygon that points to a three dimensional model of the
building.
A single outline polygon pointing to a series of parcel records has one graphic of
the condominium. In this approach the information about multiple owners is stored in
attribute tables, but there is not an accompanying graphic that outlines the footprints or
polygons of the separate owners in the condominium. Figure 5 illustrates this approach.
In this first approach an image of the condominium plat could also be attached to the
outline polygon.

A Vertical parcel attribute table

B Vertical parcel attribute table
C Vertical parcel attribute table
D Vertical parcel attribute table
E Vertical parcel attribute table
F Vertical parcel attribute table

Figure 5 – Condominium Polygon Pointing to a Table

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The second approach is to have the polygon outline in the ownership object that
points to or is related to another series of polygon objects. Each related polygon
represents a layer or floor of the condominium with the individual owners and common
elements indicated. Figure 6 illustrates this approach. In Figure 6 there are three
polygons related to the outline polygon. Each of these is a level or floor. The area
owned by owner F is indicated in each level polygon and there is an accompanying table
that can either summarize all of the holdings of owner F or a table can be attached to each
level polygon that describes the owner on each floor.

F
Level 3
F
Level 2

Level 1

F Vertical parcel attribute table

Figure 6 – Condominium Polygon Pointing to Floor Polygons

The third scenario is to have a three dimensional model of the building. This is a
more complex approach and a three dimensional model of the building is required.
However, like the first two approaches the three dimensional model would be related to
the ownership parcels through the condominium outline polygon.

In the ownership parcel polygons the exterior of the condominium is shown on

the parcel map with a polygon type indicating that it is a vertical parcel. The exterior or
outline polygon meets the requirements of the ownership features.

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3.2 Encumbrances
Encumbrances are limitations on the rights and use of the land. Easements are a
common encumbrance but there are many others such as grazing rights, fishing rights,
development rights, and floodplains. Legally an encumbrance is a right or interest in the
land of another that may diminish its value but does not prevent its sale.
Any right to, or interest in, land which may subsist the fee [ownership] by another
to the diminution of its value, but consistent with the passing of the fee
[ownership] by conveyance. A claim, lien, charge, or liability attached to and
binding real property; as examples a mortgage, judgment lien, mechanics' lien,
lease, security interest, easement or right of way. If the liability relates to a
particular asset, the asset is encumbered. (Black, 1991)
Most encumbrances run with the land (consistent with the passing of the fee by
conveyance). That is, they are tied to the land and will persist from owner to owner.
Others exist at the pleasure of the owner, such as leases. Typically leases and similar
encumbrances have an effective date and expiration date.
In the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model encumbrances are a separate feature. They can
have their own legal description, can be overlapping, and are non-continuous. The
Encumbrance feature is characterized as:
• Overlapping – Rights can overlap. For example ingress/egress of an easement, a
prescriptive right of way and a land grazing lease can all overlap.

• Non-continuous – There are many areas of land that are free from encumbrances.

Figure 7 illustrates a parcel with a utility easement, a prescription road right of way
and a floodplain. The encumbrances overlap and are non-continuous as described above.

Flood Plain
Utility
easement

Right of way

Figure 7 – Example of Encumbrances

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The question of whether roads are an encumbrance or a fee simple interest varies
from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Brown (1995) defines a prescription (prescriptive
easement) as:

the acquisition of an easement by adverse use under claim of right for a

statutory period required by law.

In many states prescriptive easements are a specified width such as 4 rods (66 feet). The
description of the ownership parcel may extend to the center of the prescriptive a right of
way, but the public controls the use of land in the prescriptive easement. That is, the
owner of the parcel does not have the right of enjoyment of the land in the prescriptive
area, therefore one of the sticks in the budle of rights for the parcel belongs to the public
for a right of way. The owner may have future reversion rights if the right of way is
abandoned. Figure 8 illustrates one example from a parcel map where a right of way was
abandoned and adjoining parcel took reversion rights of the portion of the vacated right
of way.

The right of way in Figure 8 ends in a cul-de-sac. The parcels on either side have
ownership to the center of the right of way. When the right of way is vacated, the
ownership of the land reverts to the adjoining parcels, as shown in the bottom diagram in
Figure 8. While the right of way was being used as a road, it was exempt from property
taxes and was shown as right of way. Once it was vacated and reverted to the adjoining
owners, the land was put back on the tax roll.

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Vacated
Right of Way

Right of Way

Resulting
Parcels

Right of Way

Figure 8 – Reversion Rights

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Should prescriptive areas be shown as publicly held parcels in the ownership

parcels or should the underlying owner be shown with the prescriptive right or reversion
right shown as an easement? The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model allows for either scenario
and it would be up to each jurisdiction to decide how they would map and manage
prescriptive easements and reversion rights. If the prescriptive areas are separate
ownership, then the ownership representation is continuous. If the underlying landowner
is shown as holding the land with an easement on top, the ownership is still represented
as continuous polygon features with encumbrances to represent the full picture. The
differences will be in the processes applied to determine the tax parcel and in how related
tables and relationships are connected to the objects.
3.3 Separated Rights
The separated rights are rights and interests in land ownership that can be
disconnected from the primary or fee simple surface ownership. For example, mineral
and oil rights are often separated from the surface ownership. Separated rights are
represented as overlapping non-continuous polygons. The separated rights are modeled
similarly to encumbrances. Some of the idiosyncrasies of separated rights are:
• There are often future estates and leases associated with minerals. In these
cases the mineral rights may be separated from the surface for a period of
time.
• The mineral rights can be divided according to the mineral. For example,
fossil fuels, oil and gas, sulfite minerals and surface quarry rock are often
considered as distinct separated rights.
• The apex rule for minerals that are found as defined veins and are claimed
under the 1872 mining claims act provides for extralateral rights. This
means that who ever claims the surface expression of a veined mineral
deposit has the rights to the mineral deposit even though it may pass under
the land of adjoiners. This is shown in Figure 9.

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Mineral Claim 2
400 ft x 1500 ft

Mineral Claim 1
400 ft x 1500 ft

Ore Deposit

Extralateral Rights to the Ore -

Belongs to Mineral Claim 2

Figure 9 - Apex Rule for Mineral Claims

There are also above ground separated rights. The above ground separated rights
include things like solar easements and transferable development rights (TDRs). These
too are potentially overlapping and non-continuous polygons. Overhead or above ground
separated rights tend to be three dimensional "envelopes" although they can be expressed
with a flat or two dimensional expression.
The separated rights are modeled as their own feature and are polygons. As with
the vertical parcels there could be a series of polygons based on mineral type, based on
the type of mineral claim such as lode, which is a mineral that is in place and generally in
a vein, or placer, which is all forms of mineral deposits that are not in place and are
generally minerals in a loose state, or any other classification.

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3.4 Ownership Parcel Features

The ownership parcel features and objects are shown in Figure 10. The blue lines
along the bottom of the features and objects connect the ownership parcel, encumbrance,
and separated right features to their associated reference document and owners. This is
illustrated this way in the analysis diagram to indicate that one document can contain
information about the ownership parcel, encumbrances and separated rights. Likewise
the owner line indicates that these features can have multiple owners and that owners can
hold rights to multiple features.

Feature Object

OwnerParcel Encumbrance SeparatedRight VerticalParcel ParcelReference Owner

ParcelID EncumbranceID SeparatedRightID ParcelID SourceID OwnerID
ParcelLocalLabel EncumbranceType RightOwner PrimaryParcelID DocumentNumber OwnerName
ParcelType EncumbranceOwner RightType Area VolumePage PercentOwned
ParcelName Area RightMineral[n] AreaType DocumentType OwnershipRole
* OwnerClassification AreaType Area Sequence[n] DocumentDate
Owner or ManagingAgency AreaType Effective Date *
Area
* Expiration Date
AreaType
*
*
*

Parcels

Figure 10– Parcel Objects

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3.5 Historical Parcels

The historical parcel representation described here refers to the spatial

representation of parcel history. Parcel maps and parcel information in databases are
outdated as soon as they are collected. Real estate transactions, parcel splits, and new
subdivisions occur almost continuously. Some jurisdictions may keep the most current
representation of ownership parcels on their maps and in their databases and are not
concerned with past representations. Others may keep timed or periodic snap shots, such
as monthly, quarterly, or yearly views of parcel information as it existed at that time.
Still others track the transactional changes and maintain a record of all changes in
ownership and geometry. This section describes the functionality and requirements for
historical parcel information management and some options with the ArcGIS Parcel Data
Model for this functionality. Three types of historical parcel information tracking
described are: archive, periodic, and transactional.

Archive

This type of historical information tracking is a snap shot of the entire

geodatabase at a point in time. Local governments often do this once each year to
document and archive the tax roll or assessment roll as it exists at the end of the tax or
assessment cycle. Over time these yearly or regular archives can be analyzed for changes
in assessment patterns and can be used to document the conditions or state of data at a
point in time. Typically this type of historical parcel information does not track
intermediate changes that occur between archive periods. For example, a property could
change hands several times during the year and only the starting and ending owner would
be captured in the archive. Figure 11 illustrates an archive example.

200 201

203 204

January 1, December
2000 31, 2000

Archive

Figure 11 – Archive Historical Parcels

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Periodic

Periodic historical information tracking documents the changes from a known

point in time. These are versions that contain only changes. This is sometimes called a
working file in local governments and may, for example, contain the parcel and
assessment changes from the beginning of the year. The changes may then be kept as a
separate archive at the end of the year or may be combined with the information that
didn’t change and combined into a new end of year version. If the periodic changes are
kept as a separate file there is a record of the intermediate updates and changes during the
year.

200 201

202 203 204

January 1, 2000 April 15, 2000 December 31, 2000

Periodic

Figure 12 – Periodic Historical Parcels

This approach, shown in Figure 12, supports spatially enabling the assessment roll. The
periodic archive may not be fully reconciled, i.e. intermediate parcels may not have
complete object attributes and information.

Transactional

This type of historical information tracks and keeps all transactions and all history
of parcel information in the databases and on the parcel maps. All changes are kept in a
timed sequence and all changes are kept and maintained. Transactional historical
information keeps the chain of title as well as geometry changes. The current ownership
is captured determined from the most recent set of transactions.

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201

203
December 31, 2000
204

201

April 15, 2000

202

200
January 1, 2000

Transactional

Figure 13 – Transactional Historical Parcels

This type of historical parcel management supports spatially enabling a title or land
ownership transactional system and a transactional document imaging system. It leads to
a full reconciliation with all aspects of the life of the parcel.

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4. Survey Frameworks
Survey frameworks are provide a structure for ownership parcels, for example a
subdivision exterior boundary defines and contains the individual ownership lots within
the subdivision. Typically the subdivision boundary is senior to the lot boundaries within
it. The Survey Framework features are the first or upper levels of a nested hierarchy for
describing land ownership. These are all polygon features. Survey Frameworks have the
following characteristics.

• Surveyed and measured - Survey Frameworks have the characteristic of

being able to be described and expressed in a GIS. That is, the
measurements and placement of corners and boundaries can be
determined spatially.
• Form a framework - This means that the Survey Frameworks must provide
a structure that often includes the definition of senior boundaries.
The framework component of Survey Framework means that these
polygons provide a framework or basis for describing land or
describing ownership -
• Form closed polygons - This characteristic means that the exterior
boundaries of this framework structure are intended to close. They
are intended to be polygons.

The two survey frameworks described here are simultaneous conveyances and the
Public Land Survey System (PLSS). Offshore survey frameworks, original government
grants of land, Ranchos, French Claims and Georgia Military Districts are examples of
other Survey Frameworks that can be deployed similarly to the features described here.
That is, there are many types of survey systems that form hierarchical frameworks for
describing land ownership. The two described here are the most commonly occurring.

4.1 Simultaneous Conveyances

Simultaneous conveyances occur when several parcels are created at the same
moment such as lots in a subdivision, units in a condominium, or plots in a cemetery.
A simultaneously created boundary results when several parcels of land are
created in the same legal instant by the same person, persons, or agency and by
the same instrument. All parcels have equal standard and no such portion can be
said to have prior rights or seniority over any other portion. (Brown, 1995)
Some texts describe public land survey system (PLSS) townships as simultaneous
conveyances, but they are modeled separately in the parcel data model because the
hierarchical structure has special rules for the PLSS. See the Section 4.2 for the PLSS
features.
State laws control simultaneous conveyance rules and definitions. However, there
are some commonalities. As examples,

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1. Many simultaneous conveyances have a hierarchical structure such as the

exterior boundary is senior to interior lines,
2. Lots may be nested inside blocks, and
3. Dedicated rights of way may be exempt from proportional measurements,
i.e. their width is maintained.
For the purposes of the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model the simultaneous conveyance
feature class has a polygon for the external boundary of the conveyance, such as the
subdivision exterior, and a nested or hierarchical polygon feature class that is contained
within the simultaneous conveyance, which could be roads, blocks or other feature type.

One purpose of the simultaneous conveyance feature is to improve polygon

rendering. For example the external boundaries of plats may be shown with a heavier
weight line or may be annotated differently. Another purpose of the simultaneous
conveyance feature is to provide a structure to parcel descriptions in the ownership
feature class. For example, in the Arc/Info 7.x and earlier technologies, many
jurisdictions used a region structure for plats, condominiums and subdivisions. It also
allows the parcel map to be related to underlying lots from which a parcel description is
derived.

The simultaneous conveyance feature supports the ownership parcel feature class.
Conceptually these features are non-overlapping, which means that a point in time any
piece of land that is in a simultaneous conveyance should be controlled or described by a
single simultaneous conveyance. However, they may in fact overlap for several reasons.
The two most common reasons are ambiguous legal descriptions and descriptions that are
stacked over time. Therefore, the simultaneous conveyance features are overlapping
polygons that are non-continuous. That is, the entire jurisdiction may not be covered by
simultaneous conveyances and they appear to overlap.

In Figure 14 Happy Acres Subdivision has five lots. Later a condominium plat
was developed that included Lots 3 and 4 of the subdivision and other lands outside the
subdivision. In this case the condominium, High Rise Condominium, overlaps the
subdivision, Happy Acres Subdivision. Many states would require that the portion of the
subdivision included in the condominium be vacated but other states allow this
overlapping. Technically the description of the land that was in lots 3 and 5 would now
be described as being in the condominium even though the legal description of the
condominium itself includes a portion of the plat.

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High Rise
Condominium

Lot 3
Lot 1

Lot 4
Lot 2
Lot 5

Happy Acres
Subdivision

Figure 14 – Simultaneous Conveyances Overlapping

Figure 15 is subdivision plat. This is a typical simultaneous conveyance. The red

line on the image is the external boundary. The first divisions are the blocks within the
plat. IN the case of the subdivision in Figure 15, there are two blocks, an external block
and an internal block. The second divisions are the lots within the blocks. The first
division polygons are not continuous because, as shown in Figure 15, a road right of way
separates the two blocks. The second division polygons are the individual lots within the
blocks. They are contained entirely within the block boundaries and are non-overlapping
and non-continuous.

There is an important difference in the way some organizations manage

conveyances from the example above. It is often the intent of subdivision platting
statutes to provide a legal description of all lands contained within the subdivision. If this
applies, then the more strict continuous polygon rule can be applied to the first and
second divisions.

It is also important to note that in some cases there are no blocks, that is, all the
lots are numbered within the subdivisions. In this case the first division is the lot.

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Figure 15 – Subdivision Plat

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4.2 Public Land Survey System

The Public Land Survey System is a hierarchical group of feature classes that
define land descriptions within the PLSS.
The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) is a set of baselines and principal
meridians that define more or less rectangular divisions of land. It originated in the
1780’s as a system for inventorying and describing the public domain. It remains as the
prevalent legal description framework in 32 states today.

In its idealized form, rectangular divisions begin with six mile by six mile
Townships that are numbered north and south of baselines and east and west from
principal meridians. To account for the convergence of meridians, east-west correction
lines are established at regular intervals. Townships nominally are divided into 36
sections each being nominally one mile by one mile. The Townships can be divided into
sections, tracts, lots and other types of divisions. If the first division is sections these can
be further divided into aliquot parts by quartering and lotting the sections. The PLSS
nested feature classes are the polygon manifestations of the PLSS descriptions.

6 5 4 3 2 1

7 8 9 10 11 12

18 17 16 15 14 13

19 20 21 22 23 24

30 29 28 27 26 25

31 32 33 34 35 36

Figure 16 - PLSS Township Section Divisions

Figure 16 illustrates the normal Township section divisions with the sections
numbered. However there are exceptions to this rule all across the public domain states.
The Township in Figure 16 is rectangular, but this is a generalization.
The nested components of the PLSS are described in the Cadastral Data Content
Standard (FGDC, 1999). The PLSS Township is the first or top level of polygon in the
public land survey system. Principal Meridian and/or Baseline identify PLSS Townships.
If the division is not PLSS Township then there is a Survey Name and potentially a
Secondary Survey Name. The Survey Name and Secondary Survey Name generally
occurs in Ohio, the testing ground of the public land survey.

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The first division of the PLSS Township, as defined in the Cadastral Data Content
Standard, is the division of the nominal six mile by six mile Township areas. Townships
are most commonly divided into sections, but can also be divided into tracts, protraction
blocks and other divisions. The first divisions of the Townships are non-overlapping and
more than one type of first division can exist in a PLSS Township.

The second division of the PLSS Township, as defined in the Cadastral Data
Content Standard, is a division of the first division. The most common second division
divides a section into aliquot parts, which are divisions formed by halving and
quartering, however second divisions can include government lots and tracts. Figure 17
is an example section divided into quarters and one quarter divided into sixteenths.

NE
NW 1/4
1/4

SE
1/4
SW 1/4 of
SW 1/4

Figure 17 – Public Land Survey System Second Division

The reason the quarter and sixteenth parts are included in the second division is
that these are commonly occurring divisions and they are non-overlapping. Typically all
divisions of the section are defined, even if they are not staked or described, once the
center of section is established.

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4.3 Feature Classes

The Survey Frameworks features are shown in Figure 18. The Simultaneous
Conveyances and the Public Land Survey have similar nested polygons as described
above.

Feature

SimultaneousConveyance
PLSSTownship
ConveyanceID
ConveyanceType PLSSID
ConveyanceName PrincipalMeridian
TownshipNumber
TownshipDirection
TownshipFraction
RangeNumber
RangeDirection
SurveyFirstDivision RangeFraction
SurveyName
ConveyanceIDfk
SecondarySurveyName
FirstDivisionID
TownshipType
FirstDivisionType
TownshipDuplicate
FirstDivisionName
StateCode
OriginCode

SurveySecondDivision PLSSFirstDivision
FirstDivisionIDfk
FirstDivisionID
SecondDivisionID
FirstDivisionNumber
SecondDivisionType
FirstDivisionSuffix
SecondDivisionName
FirstDivisionType

PLSSSecondDivision
SecondDivisionID
SecondDivisionNumber
SecondDivisionSuffix
SecondDivisionType

Figure 18 – Survey Frameworks

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5. Tax Parcels
Tax parcels arise from the real property tax systems, where land is valued,
assessed and taxed to support government functions. In many local jurisdictions tax
parcel mapping is the driving function for parcel automation. Tax parcel management
can be considered in five stages:

• Assessment,
• Equalization,
• Taxation,
• Tax Mapping, and
• Archive

This discussion looks at tax assessment, where values are established; tax billing, where
property bills are generated from the values; and the tax mapping, which is the parcel
mapping for the assessment or tax parcels.

Equalization is a highly variable process that can be done by local, county, or

state jurisdictions and is not discussed here. Equalization is an adjustment of the assessed
values to balance inequities that may occur across a county or a state. Sometimes
equalization factors are applied to reach a percentage of true market value. They can also
be applied to specific use classifications, such as manufacturing. Not all real property tax
systems have an equalization component.

Archiving is the process of storing historical information. Nearly all property tax
applications require a means to retrieve historical versions of tax information. The
historical tax parcels provide a graphic representation of past assessment rolls, assist
assessors with making value determinations on new parcels, and support many other
trend and analysis functions. Managing historical parcel information is an important part
of any parcel mapping system. Section 3.5 discusses the approaches to archiving and
other historical parcel management.

5.1 Tax Assessment

The purpose of tax assessment is to establish the values on real estate for property
taxing. Parcel assessment generally occurs in five steps.

• Discover taxable real estate

• Value taxable real estate
• Classify taxable real estate according to use or other basis
• Designate value for exempt real estate
• List values and use on an assessment roll

The specific steps for assessment varies from state to state and from jurisdiction to
jurisdiction, but these five steps are generic characterizations of the assessment process.

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One notable exception to this process is that some jurisdictions do not value and classify
exempt lands.

Tax assessment classifications may apply to and be coincident with the

boundaries of the ownership parcel. In these cases the tax assessment classification may
be an attribute of the ownership parcel. In other cases a single ownership parcel may
have multiple tax assessment classifications. The tax assessor may define the boundaries
of assessment classifications areas or they may be defined in terms of a percentage of the
area of an ownership parcel.

Tax assessment classifications could be defined as separate polygons. These are

sometimes called sub-parcel areas. This means that assessment classifications can
further divide the ownership parcel and these divisions can be related to the assessment
roll. This means that the sub-parcel polygons would be assessment parcels or assessment
areas and would be managed within the tax parcel mapping.

5.2 Tax Bills

Tax bills are the result of the assessment information combined with a budget or
other financial information to produce the taxes owed for each taxable parcel in a
jurisdiction. Tax bill computation can be done in a number of ways. One approach is as
follows.

• Snap shot the assessment roll at a statutorily defined point in time

• Total all the taxable value for the roll
• Compute a mil rate (dollars of tax owed per 1000 dollars of value) by
dividing the total value into the total dollars of real estate tax that must be
raised
• Apply the mil rate to the taxable lands
• Compute credits (such as lottery, other tax, programs)
• Generate and mail tax bills
• Collect taxes and track non-tax payments

Figure 19 is an example of a property tax bill.

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Figure 19 – Sample Property Tax Bill

5.3 Tax Maps

The mapping component is usually an optional component in terms of statutes and

ordinances. The certification and licensure of who can do tax mapping varies widely
from state to state. The intent of most tax parcel mapping is to represent graphically all
lands that have an entry on the assessment roll. The tax mapping may or may not
include exempt lands.

The ArcGIS Parcel Data Model supports the tax parcel mapping component of the
property taxing process. Figure 20 is a tax parcel map for the parcel and the area
surrounding the tax parcel shown on the tax bill in Figure 19.

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Figure 20 – Sample Tax Map

In Figure 20, the ownership parcel for landowner 1, has been divided into three tax
parcels (004 1070, 004 1069.A, and 004 1072). The divisions of the Public Land Survey
System were used to generate the three tax parcels.

Figure 21 illustrates some of the local decisions that are made regarding
combining and splitting ownership parcels to form tax parcels. Figure 21 illustrates two
ownership parcels. In this case Owner 1’s parcel is divided into three tax parcels. The
map hooks indicate ownership crossing a Public Land Survey System Township line.
Certified Survey Map (CSM) number 494 as annotated describes the ownership on the
tax map. The right of way polygon along the left side of the parcel is part of tax parcel
004 680.A.

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Figure 21 – Tax Parcels and Ownership Parcels

Figure 22 illustrates the non-continuous nature of some tax parcel mapping. In

this figure, the area shaded in gray in the lower left is owned by a non-taxable entity, the
village, and the grayed out area in the upper right is a road right of way. The external
boundary of the area is mapped, but no parcel numbers are assigned to shaded areas. In
this approach the sum of the area of the tax maps will not be the total area within the
jurisdiction. But because the area in gray is not applicable to the assessment and property
tax functions, the ownership of the parcels in these areas may not be maintained as a part
of the property tax processes.

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Figure 22 – Exempt Lands

There are many variations of tax mapping across the country including various
rules for including or excluding parcels, for dividing or combining ownership parcels,
and presentation in terms of annotation and line work.

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5.4 Features Classes

The feature classes and objects for the tax parcel is shown in Figure 23. The tax
roll can contain many attributes and may be a relational database system of its own. The
attributes listed in the tax roll object are a general listing of items and are not intended to
be all-inclusive. The tax and assessment rolls will have value, assessment, billing, and
tax district information by year by taxing jurisdiction.

Feature Object

TaxParcel TaxRoll
TaxPIN TaxPIN
1 AssessmentClass[n]
TaxParcelType
ExemptStatus AssessedValue[n]
1 AssessedSize[n]
LandOwnerInformation
TaxBillMailingInformation
TaxBillingInformation

Tax Parcels

Figure 23 – Tax Parcels

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6. Related Uses for Parcel Information

Related uses for parcel information describe business areas or functions that apply
the parcel information to meet specified needs. The parcel definition and the rules for
building and updating the parcels are often based on a business or application need. The
parcel uses may be a subset of ownership parcels, for example a selection from the
ownership parcels of all taxable land. Related parcel uses may also divide the ownership
parcels into smaller areas; for example, a single ownership parcel may be divided into
two use restrictions or have multiple site addresses. Ownership parcels may be combined
to form application parcels. For example, a single zoning district may be comprised of
all the parcels in an area with the same zoning classification, such as single family
residential or commercial.

The number of parcel uses is nearly limitless. Three examples are included in this
discussion.

• Site Addressing
• Regulated Uses and Restrictions
• Administrative Boundaries

The data models in this section are examples to illustrate the connection between the
parcel data model and these uses. Site addressing, regulated uses and restrictions, and
administrative boundaries may have more expansive data models.

6.1 Site Addressing

Site addresses are the location addresses of a parcel. Site address points are
coordinated values that are in or near a parcel and serve as a location for the site address
information. Maps and representation of parcel information through an address point can
serve as a rapid development and automation of parcel information and it can serve many
departments.

Site address points are a geo-location for a site address. Most site addresses are
assigned to structures. For example a building may have one site address that can span
multiple parcels, or parcel may not have a site address, such as vacant land, or a parcel
could have multiple site addresses, such as parcel with many buildings or businesses.

For some applications there may also be important supplemental address points.
For example, in rural environments there may be related points that identify the end of
the driveway for emergency vehicles. In urban environments there may be points that
identify entrances to and turns on major roads to gain access to the parcel. These related
points are not included in the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model design but it is recognized that
these can be important points.

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Figure 24 illustrates structures on parcels with site address points. Parcel

information can be linked to the site address point. The structures may have more than
one address, as in the condominiums.

Condos

Church

House

vacant land

House

Figure 24 – Site Address Points

6.2 Regulated Uses and Restrictions

Regulated uses and restrictions are controls by a public body that limit the uses of
land for the purposes of controlling development, maintaining property values, or
implementing master plans or other plans. The most common form of regulated uses is
zoning.

Zoning is a government process that divides a jurisdiction into districts with

specified limits and regulations on the nature, usage, and physical dimensions
within the zones. (Black, 1991)

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Figure 25 is a photograph of a portion of a hand drawn zoning map, which is an example

of a map of Euclidean Zoning.

Euclidean Zoning is a type of zoning based on district-and-use. (Black, 1991)

Some of the district designations on the map in Figure 23 are RD, IG, and BH. The
information on the restrictions on the nature, usage, and physical dimensions, including
setbacks and density for these districts is described in the Zoning Ordinance. In the
diagram shown in Figure 25, the zoning district boundaries are contiguous with the parcel
boundaries, but this may not always be the case.
Well head protection area

Euclidean Zoning
District

Figure 25 - Hand Drawn Zoning Map

Figure 25 also shows an overlapping district, a well head protection zone, that
overlays the Euclidean Zoning. Towers and environmental restrictions may also create
overlapping zoning regulations and hence overlapping zoning district polygons.

Figure 26 is an example of a Master Plan, which is anther approach that is

commonly used for regulated use. In this case the Master Plan shows designated
commercial and development areas. Like the map in Figure 25, the Master Planning
zones are also contiguous with the parcel boundaries and in this case are built from the
parcel boundaries.

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Figure 26 – Sample Master Plan

Another common type of restriction is a restrictive covenant. These are

limitations in uses that are a part of the chain of title and run with the land.

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6.3 Administrative Boundaries

Administrative boundaries are any division of land for managing or governing

programs or agencies. The example in Figure 27 shows school district boundaries.
These boundaries define what schools children attend and which school taxes are levied
on the property tax roll. Notice that the school district boundaries do not follow the
parcel boundaries. This is especially clear on the eastern side of the map where the
school district boundary runs north of the right of way.

Neighborhood
Boundaries

School District
Boundaries

Parcel
Boundaries

Figure 27 – Administrative Boundaries Derived from Parcel Boundaries

The other administrative boundaries shown in Figure 27 are neighborhoods. The

neighborhoods are generally parcel boundaries, although there are exceptions.

Counties, cities, villages, and towns or townships, and federal agency jurisdictions
are other examples of administrative boundaries. These types of boundaries may benefit
from parcel information as a reference or they may be intended to follow parcel
boundaries.

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6.4 Features Classes

The feature classes described in this portion of the diagram are provided for
informational purposes only. These features are not part of the ArcGIS Parcel Data
Model, but they are closely related to it.

Feature

Restriction RegulatedUse SiteAddress

RestrictionID RegulatedID AddressText
RestrcitionType RegulationType StreetNumber
RestrictionDescription RegulationClassification StreetNumberSuffix
RestrictionAgency RegulationDescription StreetPrefix
RegulationAgency StreetName
StreetType
StreetSuffix
Municipality

Parcel Related Uses

Figure 28 – Related Uses for Parcel Information

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7. Corners and Boundaries

Corners and boundaries can be used to build parcel information. The corners are
the ends of the boundaries and the boundaries are the lines connecting corners. In many
jurisdictions the parcel maps begin with the definition of the corners and build the parcel
map through coordinate geometry or adjustments as described in Section 2 of this
document.
The corners and boundaries features are based on the Federal Geographic Data
Committee (FGDC) Cadastral Data Content Standard (FGDC, 1999). The parcel is the
heart of the FGDC Cadastral Data Content Standard. In the standard the parcel is defined
by legal descriptions. Parcels are the spatial extent formed by record boundaries and
corners, which are the end points of record boundaries. The attributes for corners and the
record boundaries as described in the standard are information from public records. It is
this information that is used to generate and label the parcel information.
7.1 Corners
Corners are parcel point features. As examples property corners form the exterior
of parcels and public land survey corners are the exterior points of divisions of the Public
Land Survey. Corners are usually monumented on the ground and are the physical
demarcation of rights and interests in land. Landowners find their land on the ground by
locating the corners.
Monuments can be made of a wide variety of materials and come in a wide
variety of sizes. Many states have legislation that governs size and material for corner
monuments of recorded surveys. A corner can have multiple monuments that are
attempting to identify and locate the correct legal location of the corner on the ground.
There is a significant body of evidence and professional procedure related to resolving
multiple monuments through evidence evaluation.
The same construction methods used to determine parcel boundaries are used to
establish coordinates on corners. These are cartographic construction, computations, and
adjustments. The methods used to determine the coordinates are important because they
help determine coordinate accuracy.
The ArcGIS Parcel Model accommodates multiple monuments for corners and
multiple coordinates for monuments. That is, a corner may be marked by more than one
monument. A monument can have more than one coordinate value. To make informed
decisions about which coordinate to use in a GIS to represent a corner, it may be
important to know the source and quality information of all coordinates and monuments.
The FGDC Cadastral Data Content Standard (FGDC< 1999) addresses this issue
as well. The attributes for corners, monuments and coordinates are taken from the
standard. The concept is to have GIS features that represent the physical realities of
parcel corners and to capture sufficient information to support parcel mapping.

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Monument
Corner (Corner Point)

Corner Coordinate
(Corner Point Measured Coordinate)

Figure 29 – Corners, Monuments and Coordinates

The symbols in Figure 29 are a shorthand that indicates a corner can have
multiple monuments and a monument can have multiple coordinate values.
7.2 Boundaries

Boundaries are the exterior lines that form the parcel. In many jurisdictions
coordinate geometry or least squares adjustments are used to compute the shape and
extent of parcels. The information for the coordinate geometry and adjustments are
usually extracted from information in the public records, such as recorded deeds or
surveys. A jurisdiction can collect some or all of these attributes depending on the
construction method and what information is available. Any of the attributes can be used
for boundary annotation.
Ambulatory boundaries are boundaries that move. Rivers and other riparian
features define the most common ambulatory boundaries. Natural features can be linked
to boundaries to define an ambulatory boundary and are shown in the boundary feature.

7.3 Corner and Boundary Features

Figure 30 illustrates the corner and boundary features for ArcGIS Parcel Data
Model. Corners are point features. Corners are marked by monuments, which are also
point features, and in parcel mapping, monuments have coordinate values. Boundaries
are linear features and are shown as a separate entity. Corners mark the ends of parcel
boundaries.

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Feature

Corner Monument CornerCoordinate Boundary

CornerID CornerPointID CornerPointID RecordBoundaryID
CornerClassification CornerID XCoordinate RecordBounds
CornerLabel MonumentType YCoordinate Status
CornerQualifier MonumentDateSet ZCoordinate OffsetLeft
* CPSourceAgent Status OffsetRight
CPSourceIndex CSourceAgent ConnectingLine
CPSourceType CSourceIndex RecordBoundaryComment
CPSourceDate CSourceType RecordDirection
CornerPointStatus CSourceDate RecordDistance
* CSourceComments DirectionType
XAccuracy DirectionUnit
YAccuracy DirectionQuadrant
ZAccuracy DistanceUnit Subtype

Reliability DistanceType
AccuracyComments Angle
HorizontalDatum Distance
CoordinateSystem Radius Construction
VerticalDatum Delta
Tangent
ArcLength
Side NaturalFeature
RBSourceAgent
RBSourceIndex
RBSourceType
RBSourceDate

Corners and Boundaries

Figure 30 – Corner and Boundary Features

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8. Geodatabase Overview for Parcel Users

This section defines the ArcGIS geodatabase elements that are used in the parcel
data model. These concepts have been described more fully in Modeling Our World
(Zieler, 1999) and are repeated here in terms of parcel information.
8.1 Objects
An object represents a real world object such as a tax bill or a property owner. An
object is stored as a row in a relational database table.

Objects in the ArcGIS System do not have a geographic representation, such as a

table of landowner names or a list of assessed parcel values. A table of tax bill address
objects can be associated to a set of tax parcel features through a relationship class as
shown in Figure 31.

Relationship Parcel Tax Bill

Class Addresses

parcels

Figure 31 – Tax Bill Addresses and Parcel Features

8.2 Features

Features are geographic objects that have a spatial location defined. More
specifically, a feature is just like an object but it also has a geometry or shape column in
the relational database table for the object. Through inheritance a feature has all of the
methods of the Object class, but it also has more methods. One way to think of this is that
a feature is a special kind of object with additional capabilities.

For example, Tax Parcels and Owner Parcels are polygon feature classes in the Parcel
Model. Each type of parcel has different attributes and topological rules, creating the
need for two separate feature classes. Remember that a feature class is just another table
in the database, so just like any other database; if we want to have different fields for Tax
Parcels and Owner Parcels then we need different tables. In the geodatabase these
columns are referred to as attributes or properties.

In addition to needing different classes when features have different attributes, a

feature class is constrained to be a collection of features with the same type of geometry:
point, line, or polygon. Each type of geometry requires a separate feature class.

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Easement Line Line Attribute

Feature Class Table Class

Easement
Polygon
PolygonAttribute
Feature Class
Table Class
Parcel Polygon
Feature Class

Figure 32 – Line – Polygon and table Feature Classes

Simple feature classes contain points, lines, polygons, or annotation without any
topological rules between them. The geodatabase also has the concept of more
sophisticated feature classes, such as network features and topological features. Network
Features inherit from the NetworkFeature class and each feature class participates in a
geometric network. As an example, if water valves and mains are in the same geometric
network, if we move the valve the pipes will stretch, keeping their physical connection to
the valves.

In the parcel world Topological features are of more interest because they
describe the relationships between and within polygon feature classes. Special
topological features are under development for the ArcGIS 8.2 release. Right now you
can use the simple polygon feature classes to build a database that will be ready for these
enhancements. As much as possible the ArcGIS Parcel Data Model represents a practical
way to build your parcel management polygons today in a way that will allow easy
transition to future ArcGIS releases.

8.3 Feature Datasets

A feature dataset is simply a collection of feature classes that share a common

spatial reference. A spatial reference is part of the definition of the geometry field in the
database. As an example, a set of parcels stored in NAD27, UTM Zone 5 could not be in
the same feature dataset as Public Land Survey System features stored in geographic
Latitude/Longitude coordinates. Topological feature classes are bound within a topology
graph that manages the feature classes in an integrated topological unit. You may choose
to organize feature classes in multiple feature datasets, but related topological feature
classes must be contained within the same feature dataset so that topological relationships
are not broken due to minor differences in mathematical calculations between geometries
in different spatial references.

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8.4 Topological Features in the ArcGIS Parcel Model

Some agencies may have many feature classes in their parcel feature datasets and
others will have fewer feature classes. One of the important aspects of the Parcel Data
Model is a better understanding of the design trade-offs involved in topological
relationships and some guidelines for your own project.

8.5 Relationships

Three types of relationships can exist between objects or features: spatial, explicit
and topological.

Spatial relationships are merely the spatial coincidence of features. For example,
rather than storing which Tax District that a parcel is located in as an attribute of the
parcel, a spatial operator like “is inside of” can be used to determine which tax district the
parcel falls within. These are capabilities inherent in a GIS system that simplifies the
process of data maintenance and analysis over a basic relational database system.
Sometimes, however, you will need to maintain more specific information about related
objects and features.

Explicit relationships are created between objects as a relationship class. One

object serves as the origin class and the other object is referred to as the destination class.
These are similar to the primary and foreign key relationships in relational databases; the
geodatabase has its own infrastructure for managing these relationships in a versioned
database environment. ArcInfo also provides the ability for objects to message each other
as part of the relationship definition. This provides programmers the ability to build
sophisticated behavior into objects. In this explanation we have used the word object, but
since features are a special kinds of objects, explicit relationships apply to any and all
kinds of features in the ArcGIS system.

As an example, we might want to send a message to TaxBillAddress objects when

a related TaxParcel is made historical. Based on rules built into the TaxBillAddress
object, the related addresses could decide whether to update their own status to historical
or to sever the relationship to the single historical parcel if other TaxParcels are still using
this address. The key point is that the behavior is programmed into the TaxParcel and
TaxBillAddress objects, not into a specific application or tool that is separate from the
objects.

In this way, ArcInfo manages both the attributes and behavior of objects, and
programmers work in an object-component environment that is abstracted from the
underlying physical database model and augmented by a programming framework of
many interfaces and methods. The geodatabase provides the object-relational mapping
and manages the integrity of the data in the underlying database. Explicit relationships
are one way to trigger behavior in the system but you should be careful to select the
smallest set of relationships possible and understand how relationships impact system

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behavior. More information on this topic can be found in Building a Geodatabase in your
ArcInfo documentation set.

Examples of topological relationships are geometric networks and planar

topologies. As mentioned previously, geometric networks result in system behavior that
ensures the connectivity of a network data model. Planar topologies ensure that rules
within and between feature classes in a feature dataset are enforced through topological
graphs. One example of this is that ownership polygons are not allowed to overlap each
other.

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