Webmap of Allegheny municipalities and parcel data. Zoom for a clickable parcel map with owner name, property photograph, and link to the County Real Estate website for property sales information.

Allows users to get Property and Zoning Data

This dataset overlays a grid on the County to assist in locating a parcel. The grid squares are 3,500 by 4,500 square feet. The data was derived from original MAPINDX: Map Index Sheets from Block and Lot Grid of Property Assessment and based on aerial photography. Tiles are numbered in a clockwise spiral fashion starting with #1 at the point in downtown Pittsburgh. Each tile contains 16 Blocks. Each Index Sheet contains 16 lot/block sheets, labeled from left to right, top to bottom (4 across, 4 down): A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, R, S. The first (4) numeric characters in a parcelID indicate the Index sheet in which the parcel can be found, the alpha character identifies the block in which most (or all) of the property lies.

Overview

This dataset contains all DOMI Street Closure Permit data in the Computronix (CX) system from the date of its adoption (in May 2020) until the present. The data in each record can be used to determine when street closures are occurring, who is requesting these closures, why the closure is being requested, and for mapping the closures themselves. It is updated hourly (as of March 2024).

Preprocessing/Formatting

It is important to distinguish between a permit, a permit's street closure(s), and the roadway segments that are referenced to that closure(s).

• The CX system identifies a street in segments of roadway. (As an example, the CX system could divide Maple Street into multiple segments.)

• A single street closure may span multiple segments of a street.

• The street closure permit refers to all the component line segments.

• A permit may have multiple streets which are closed. Street closure permits often reference many segments of roadway.

The roadway_id field is a unique GIS line segment representing the aforementioned segments of road. The roadway_id values are assigned internally by the CX system and are unlikely to be known by the permit applicant. A section of roadway may have multiple permits issued over its lifespan. Therefore, a given roadway_id value may appear in multiple permits.

The field closure_id represents a unique ID for each closure, and permit_id uniquely identifies each permit. This is in contrast to the aforementioned roadway_id field which, again, is a unique ID only for the roadway segments.

City teams that use this data requested that each segment of each street closure permit be represented as a unique row in the dataset. Thus, a street closure permit that refers to three segments of roadway would be represented as three rows in the table. Aside from the roadway_id field, most other data from that permit pertains equally to those three rows. Thus, the values in most fields of the three records are identical.

Each row has the fields segment_num and total_segments which detail the relationship of each record, and its corresponding permit, according to street segment. The above example produced three records for a single permit. In this case, total_segments would equal 3 for each record. Each of those records would have a unique value between 1 and 3.

The geometry field consists of string values of lat/long coordinates, which can be used to map the street segments.

All string text (most fields) were converted to UPPERCASE data. Most of the data are manually entered and often contain non-uniform formatting. While several solutions for cleaning the data exist, text were transformed to UPPERCASE to provide some degree of regularization. Beyond that, it is recommended that the user carefully think through cleaning any unstructured data, as there are many nuances to consider. Future improvements to this ETL pipeline may approach this problem with a more sophisticated technique.

Known Uses

These data are used by DOMI to track the status of street closures (and associated permits).

Further Documentation and Resources

An archived dataset containing historical street closure records (from before May of 2020) for the City of Pittsburgh may be found here: https://data.wprdc.org/dataset/right-of-way-permits

About the G.M. Hopkins Maps History and Background of the Maps Maps produced by the G.M. Hopkins Company have made a lasting impression on the boundaries of many American cities. Between 1870 and 1940, the company produced over 175 atlases and real estate plat maps that primarily covered the Eastern sea board, including cities, counties, and townships in 18 different states and the District of Columbia. In the early years, the company produced county atlases, but gradually focused on city plans and atlases. They were among the first publishers to create a cadastral atlas, a cross between a fire insurance plat and a county atlas prevalent in the 1860s-1870s. These real estate or land ownership maps (also known as plat maps) not only depict property owners, but show lot and block numbers, dimensions, street widths, and other buildings and landmarks, including churches, cemeteries, mills, schools, roads, railroads, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams. Originally named the G.M. Hopkins and Company, the map-making business was jointly founded in 1865 in Philadelphia, Pa., by the Hopkins brothers, G.M. and Henry. The true identity of G.M. Hopkins remains somewhat of a mystery even today. “G.M.” either stands for Griffith Morgan or George Morgan. There are three different possibilities for the confusion over his identity. “Either the compilers of the earlier [city] directories were negligent; G.M. Hopkins changed his first name; or there were two G.M. Hopkins (father and son) working for the same firm” (Moak, Jefferson M. Philadelphia Mapmakers. Philadelphia: Shackamaxon Society, 1976, p. 258).

http://digital.library.pitt.edu/abouthp/#hopkins

City of Pittsburgh Boundary based on 2020 Census Data. This includes Mt. Oliver Borough which is not a part of Pittsburgh but is included since it is fully enclosed by Pittsburgh. This also includes rivers within Pittsburgh. This is considered current as of August 2023.

Allows users to download 200' Scale Lot and Block Maps

Pittsburgh City Boundary

Real Property parcel characteristics for Allegheny County, PA. Includes information pertaining to land, values, sales, abatements, and building characteristics (if residential) by parcel. Disclaimer: Parcel information is provided from the Office of Property Assessments in Allegheny County. Content and availability are subject to change. Please review the Data Dictionary for details on included fields before each use. Property characteristics and values change due to a variety of factors such as court rulings, municipality permit processing and subdivision plans. Consequently the assessment system parcel data is continually changing. Please take the dynamic nature of this information into consideration before using it. Excludes name and contact information for property owners, as required by Ordinance 3478-07.

Orientation

The first two items listed below are slightly different versions of the most current property-assessments records. The first is optimized for faster download but has 1) a few fields (including PROPERTY_ZIP and MUNICODE) as integers instead of strings and 2) the date columns in two different formats. The second item downloads more slowly, is optimized for API queries, and has all dates in a standard YYYY-MM-DD format. Further down you can find useful links, documentation, and then archived versions of property assessments files.

Pittsburgh Neighborhoods

About the G.M. Hopkins Maps History and Background of the Maps Maps produced by the G.M. Hopkins Company have made a lasting impression on the boundaries of many American cities. Between 1870 and 1940, the company produced over 175 atlases and real estate plat maps that primarily covered the Eastern sea board, including cities, counties, and townships in 18 different states and the District of Columbia. In the early years, the company produced county atlases, but gradually focused on city plans and atlases. They were among the first publishers to create a cadastral atlas, a cross between a fire insurance plat and a county atlas prevalent in the 1860s-1870s. These real estate or land ownership maps (also known as plat maps) not only depict property owners, but show lot and block numbers, dimensions, street widths, and other buildings and landmarks, including churches, cemeteries, mills, schools, roads, railroads, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams. Originally named the G.M. Hopkins and Company, the map-making business was jointly founded in 1865 in Philadelphia, Pa., by the Hopkins brothers, G.M. and Henry. The true identity of G.M. Hopkins remains somewhat of a mystery even today. “G.M.” either stands for Griffith Morgan or George Morgan. There are three different possibilities for the confusion over his identity. “Either the compilers of the earlier [city] directories were negligent; G.M. Hopkins changed his first name; or there were two G.M. Hopkins (father and son) working for the same firm” (Moak, Jefferson M. Philadelphia Mapmakers. Philadelphia: Shackamaxon Society, 1976, p. 258).

http://digital.library.pitt.edu/abouthp/#hopkins

This webmap demarcates municipal voting districts in Allegheny County.

If viewing this description on the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center’s open data portal (http://www.wprdc.org), this dataset is harvested on a weekly basis from Allegheny County’s GIS data portal (http://openac.alcogis.opendata.arcgis.com/). The full metadata record for this dataset can also be found on Allegheny County’s GIS portal. You can access the metadata record and other resources on the GIS portal by clicking on the “Explore” button (and choosing the “Go to resource” option) to the right of the “ArcGIS Open Dataset” text below.

Category: Civic Vitality and Governance

Organization: Allegheny County

Department: Elections Divison; Department of Administrative Services

Temporal Coverage: 2015

Data Notes:

Coordinate System: Pennsylvania State Plane South Zone 3702; U.S. Survey Foot

Development Notes: County staff scanned original court maps into the GIS and rubber-sheeted them to fit the Allegheny County GIS Base Data developed from a flyover in 1992-93.

Other: none

Related Document(s): Data Dictionary (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HR24LyBNpLwvJZoaGp-tBGRw0HRoXNIef6nU4UQQMMo/edit?usp=sharing)

Frequency - Data Change: As needed

Frequency - Publishing: As needed

Data Steward Name: Eli Thomas

Data Steward Email: gishelp@alleghenycounty.us

Trees cared for and managed by the City of Pittsburgh Department of Public Works Forestry Division.

Tree Benefits are calculated using the National Tree Benefit Calculator Web Service.

NOTE: The data in this dataset has not updated since 2020 because of a broken data feed. We're working to fix it.

1855 Map of the city of Pittsburgh with some of the surrounding communities. This map service includes a mosaic of several volumes of plat maps that were originally bound atlases. The mosaic was created using ArcGIS software from the scanned JPEG images, varying from 300-600 dpi. These images were obtained from the Historic Pittsburgh website (http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins) The images were georeferenced to WGS84 Web Mercator and the borders were clipped to create a contiguous map.This product is to be used for reference purposes only. The original historical paper maps were sometimes damaged or distorted to varying degrees due to age and use. There are spatial inaccuracies and some places where the footprints do not lineup perfectly or in some cases overlap.

About the G.M. Hopkins Maps

History and Background of the Maps

Maps produced by the G.M. Hopkins Company have made a lasting impression on the boundaries of many American cities. Between 1870 and 1940, the company produced over 175 atlases and real estate plat maps that primarily covered the Eastern sea board, including cities, counties, and townships in 18 different states and the District of Columbia. In the early years, the company produced county atlases, but gradually focused on city plans and atlases. They were among the first publishers to create a cadastral atlas, a cross between a fire insurance plat and a county atlas prevalent in the 1860s-1870s. These real estate or land ownership maps (also known as plat maps) not only depict property owners, but show lot and block numbers, dimensions, street widths, and other buildings and landmarks, including churches, cemeteries, mills, schools, roads, railroads, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams.

Originally named the G.M. Hopkins and Company, the map-making business was jointly founded in 1865 in Philadelphia, Pa., by the Hopkins brothers, G.M. and Henry. The true identity of G.M. Hopkins remains somewhat of a mystery even today. “G.M.” either stands for Griffith Morgan or George Morgan. There are three different possibilities for the confusion over his identity. “Either the compilers of the earlier [city] directories were negligent; G.M. Hopkins changed his first name; or there were two G.M. Hopkins (father and son) working for the same firm” (Moak, Jefferson M. Philadelphia Mapmakers. Philadelphia: Shackamaxon Society, 1976, p. 258).

http://digital.library.pitt.edu/abouthp/#hopkins

About the G.M. Hopkins Maps History and Background of the Maps Maps produced by the G.M. Hopkins Company have made a lasting impression on the boundaries of many American cities. Between 1870 and 1940, the company produced over 175 atlases and real estate plat maps that primarily covered the Eastern sea board, including cities, counties, and townships in 18 different states and the District of Columbia. In the early years, the company produced county atlases, but gradually focused on city plans and atlases. They were among the first publishers to create a cadastral atlas, a cross between a fire insurance plat and a county atlas prevalent in the 1860s-1870s. These real estate or land ownership maps (also known as plat maps) not only depict property owners, but show lot and block numbers, dimensions, street widths, and other buildings and landmarks, including churches, cemeteries, mills, schools, roads, railroads, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams. Originally named the G.M. Hopkins and Company, the map-making business was jointly founded in 1865 in Philadelphia, Pa., by the Hopkins brothers, G.M. and Henry. The true identity of G.M. Hopkins remains somewhat of a mystery even today. “G.M.” either stands for Griffith Morgan or George Morgan. There are three different possibilities for the confusion over his identity. “Either the compilers of the earlier [city] directories were negligent; G.M. Hopkins changed his first name; or there were two G.M. Hopkins (father and son) working for the same firm” (Moak, Jefferson M. Philadelphia Mapmakers. Philadelphia: Shackamaxon Society, 1976, p. 258). http://digital.library.pitt.edu/abouthp/#hopkins McKeesport from the original Sanborn maps from 1889.

This webmap demarcates municipal voting districts in Allegheny County. If viewing this description on the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center’s open data portal (http://www.wprdc.org), this dataset is harvested on a weekly basis from Allegheny County’s GIS data portal (http://openac.alcogis.opendata.arcgis.com/). The full metadata record for this dataset can also be found on Allegheny County’s GIS portal. You can access the metadata record and other resources on the GIS portal by clicking on the “Explore” button (and choosing the “Go to resource” option) to the right of the “ArcGIS Open Dataset” text below. Category: Civic Vitality and Governance Organization: Allegheny County Department: Elections Division; Department of Administrative Services Temporal Coverage: 2016 Data Notes: Coordinate System: Pennsylvania State Plane South Zone 3702; U.S. Survey Foot Development Notes: County staff scanned original court maps into the GIS and rubber-sheeted them to fit the Allegheny County GIS Base Data developed from a flyover in 1992-93. Other: none Related Document(s): Data Dictionary (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HR24LyBNpLwvJZoaGp-tBGRw0HRoXNIef6nU4UQQMMo/edit?usp=sharing) Frequency - Data Change: As needed Frequency - Publishing: As needed Data Steward Name: Eli Thomas Data Steward Email: gishelp@alleghenycounty.us

Most of the text in this description originally appeared on the Mapping Inequality Website. Robert K. Nelson, LaDale Winling, Richard Marciano, Nathan Connolly, et al., “Mapping Inequality,” American Panorama, ed. Robert K. Nelson and Edward L. Ayers,

"HOLC staff members, using data and evaluations organized by local real estate professionals--lenders, developers, and real estate appraisers--in each city, assigned grades to residential neighborhoods that reflected their "mortgage security" that would then be visualized on color-coded maps. Neighborhoods receiving the highest grade of "A"--colored green on the maps--were deemed minimal risks for banks and other mortgage lenders when they were determining who should received loans and which areas in the city were safe investments. Those receiving the lowest grade of "D," colored red, were considered "hazardous."

Conservative, responsible lenders, in HOLC judgment, would "refuse to make loans in these areas [or] only on a conservative basis." HOLC created area descriptions to help to organize the data they used to assign the grades. Among that information was the neighborhood's quality of housing, the recent history of sale and rent values, and, crucially, the racial and ethnic identity and class of residents that served as the basis of the neighborhood's grade. These maps and their accompanying documentation helped set the rules for nearly a century of real estate practice. "

HOLC agents grading cities through this program largely "adopted a consistently white, elite standpoint or perspective. HOLC assumed and insisted that the residency of African Americans and immigrants, as well as working-class whites, compromised the values of homes and the security of mortgages. In this they followed the guidelines set forth by Frederick Babcock, the central figure in early twentieth-century real estate appraisal standards, in his Underwriting Manual: "The infiltration of inharmonious racial groups ... tend to lower the levels of land values and to lessen the desirability of residential areas."

These grades were a tool for redlining: making it difficult or impossible for people in certain areas to access mortgage financing and thus become homeowners. Redlining directed both public and private capital to native-born white families and away from African American and immigrant families. As homeownership was arguably the most significant means of intergenerational wealth building in the United States in the twentieth century, these redlining practices from eight decades ago had long-term effects in creating wealth inequalities that we still see today. Mapping Inequality, we hope, will allow and encourage you to grapple with this history of government policies contributing to inequality."

Data was copied from the Mapping Inequality Website for communities in Western Pennsylvania where data was available. These communities include Altoona, Erie, Johnstown, Pittsburgh, and New Castle. Data included original and georectified images, scans of the neighborhood descriptions, and digital map layers. Data here was downloaded on June 9, 2020.

This dataset portrays the boundaries of the County Council Districts in Allegheny County. The dataset is based on municipal boundaries and City of Pittsburgh ward boundaries and was updated as the result of reapportionment in September 2002. It has also been attributed with the current representatives' names. If viewing this description on the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center’s open data portal (http://www.wprdc.org), this dataset is harvested on a weekly basis from Allegheny County’s GIS data portal (http://openac.alcogis.opendata.arcgis.com/). The full metadata record for this dataset can also be found on Allegheny County’s GIS portal. You can access the metadata record and other resources on the GIS portal by clicking on the “Explore” button (and choosing the “Go to resource” option) to the right of the “ArcGIS Open Dataset” text below. Category: Civic Vitality and Governance Organization: Allegheny County Department: Geographic Information Systems Group; Department of Administrative Services Temporal Coverage: 2002-present Data Notes: Coordinate System: Pennsylvania State Plane South Zone 3702; U.S. Survey Foot Development Notes: none Other: none Related Document(s): Data Dictionary (none) Frequency - Data Change: As needed Frequency - Publishing: As needed Data Steward Name: Eli Thomas Data Steward Email: gishelp@alleghenycounty.us

The Land Cover dataset demarcates 14 land cover types by area; such as Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Forest, Agriculture, etc.

If viewing this description on the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center’s open data portal (http://www.wprdc.org), this dataset is harvested on a weekly basis from Allegheny County’s GIS data portal (http://openac.alcogis.opendata.arcgis.com/). The full metadata record for this dataset can also be found on Allegheny County’s GIS portal. You can access the metadata record and other resources on the GIS portal by clicking on the “Explore” button (and choosing the “Go to resource” option) to the right of the “ArcGIS Open Dataset” text below.

Category: Geography

Organization: Allegheny County

Department: Geographic Information Systems Group; Department of Administrative Services

Temporal Coverage: 1994

Data Notes:

Coordinate System: Pennsylvania State Plane South Zone 3702; U.S. Survey Foot

Development Notes: The dataset was created by Chester Environmental through combined image processing and GIS analysis of Landsat TM imagery of October 2, 1992, existing aerial photography, hardcopy and digital mapping sources and Census Bureau demographic data. The original dataset was created in 1993, then updated by Chester in 1994.

Other: none

Related Document(s): Data Dictionary (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VfUflfki42mpLSkr1R-up_OXGD3mHnv8tqeXf6XS9O0/edit?usp=sharing)

Frequency - Data Change: As needed

Frequency - Publishing: As needed

Data Steward Name: Eli Thomas

Data Steward Email: gishelp@alleghenycounty.us