Virginia Geographic Information Network

Virginia Geographic Information Network
Name	Virginia Geographic Information Network
Abbreviation	VGIN
Formation	1998
Type	State agency
Headquarters	Richmond, Virginia
Region served	Commonwealth of Virginia

Contents

Virginia Geographic Information Network

The Virginia Geographic Information Network coordinates spatial data and geospatial services for the Commonwealth of Virginia, supporting planning, emergency response, and resource management across Richmond, Virginia, Alexandria, Virginia, Norfolk, Virginia, Virginia Beach, Virginia, and other localities. It works with agencies such as the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, the Library of Virginia, and academic partners including the University of Virginia, the Virginia Tech, the George Mason University to provide common basemaps, elevation models, and address data. VGIN’s work underpins initiatives involving the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the United States Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Census Bureau, and regional entities like the Tidewater Regional Authority.

Overview and Mission

VGIN’s mission is to establish and maintain a statewide spatial data infrastructure that enables interoperability among entities such as the Virginia Department of Health, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the Department of Conservation and Recreation (Virginia), the Virginia State Police, and municipal governments including Charlottesville, Virginia and Roanoke, Virginia. The network promotes data stewardship practices aligned with national efforts by the Federal Geographic Data Committee, the National States Geographic Information Council, and standards bodies like the Open Geospatial Consortium to support applications used by the Virginia Museum of Natural History and regional planners in the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission.

VGIN evolved from state efforts in the 1990s to coordinate mapping and geospatial information among agencies including the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Forestry, driven by needs identified after events such as Hurricane Isabel (2003), and informed by federal initiatives from the US Geological Survey and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Early programs built partnerships with universities such as Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia, and with federal partners like the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, leading to statewide address databases, orthophotography programs, and digital elevation datasets used in projects involving the James River, the Chesapeake Bay, and the Shenandoah National Park.

VGIN operates within the Virginia Secretary of Administration framework and coordinates with cabinet-level agencies including the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. Governance involves advisory committees drawing representatives from municipal governments such as Fairfax County, Virginia, academic institutions like Old Dominion University, and federal partners including the US Geological Survey. Oversight integrates statutory authorities from the Commonwealth of Virginia legislature and programmatic guidance consistent with national policy from the Federal Geographic Data Committee and cooperative agreements with regional entities like the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.

VGIN provides services including statewide geocoding, address point maintenance, orthophotography acquisition, and elevation products used by agencies such as the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Health, and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. Programs support emergency response coordination with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, hazard mapping with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, coastal inundation modeling tied to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration datasets, and economic development mapping utilized by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership and local governments like Newport News, Virginia.

VGIN maintains geospatial layers including cadastral parcels, transportation networks, hydrography, and address points aligned with standards from the Open Geospatial Consortium, the Federal Geographic Data Committee, and the National States Geographic Information Council. Its infrastructure leverages services from federal partners such as the United States Geological Survey for elevation data and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for coastal imagery, and supports interoperability with platforms used by institutions like the Library of Virginia and universities such as George Mason University.

Funding and partnerships for VGIN involve state appropriations from the Commonwealth of Virginia budget, federal grants from agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Science Foundation, and cooperative agreements with entities including the United States Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and regional authorities like the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission. Academic collaborations include research and workforce development with Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia, and Old Dominion University, and vendor relationships involve technology firms supporting enterprise GIS deployments used by the Virginia Department of Transportation.

VGIN’s products have supported floodplain mapping for communities along the James River and the Potomac River, coastal resilience planning in the Chesapeake Bay and Tidewater, Virginia, emergency response during events such as Hurricane Isabel (2003) and subsequent flood events, and infrastructure planning projects led by the Virginia Department of Transportation and regional planning bodies like the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization. Notable datasets and initiatives include statewide lidar campaigns informing research at Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia, address point inventories used by the United States Census Bureau for the Decennial Census, and orthophotography programs that support conservation work by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (Virginia) and cultural resource management by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.

Category:Virginia agencies