Maps and Data
The Tompkins County Department of Planning and Sustainability maintains a Geographic Information System (GIS) that collects, maintains, and prepares maps of geographic data. Most of the Department's GIS function is centered on data that support the Department's ongoing planning activities. As a result, the Department of Planning and Sustainability produces a variety of maps for use by the general public. The maps are intended for citizen planners and the general public to help them plan in their communities.
Custom maps, analysis, and data services are offered by County GIS analysts by appointment.
Please call 274-5418 for a consultation.
Online Interactive Maps
The Department of Planning and Sustainability maintains two interactive maps:
Other online web maps for our region can be found on the Mapping Tompkins webpage.
Land Use and Land Cover
The Department of Planning and Sustainability produced a land use and land cover data set of Tompkins County in 1995, 2007, and 2013. The 2013 data set used the 2012 natural color ortho-imagery. The Department is currently updating the land use land cover data using 2015 imagery. Plans are to have this data available before the end of 2016.
The land use and land cover classification system(PDF, 112KB) that was designed for the 1995 project to meet the needs of the users of these data was used for the 2007 and 2013 data. High resolution natural color digital orthoimagery acquired from the NYS Office of Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Coordination (CSCIC), and a number of other secondary digital data sources (wetlands, hydrology, tax parcel and planimetric base data) were used to interpret and delineate land use and land cover directly on-screen.
In 1968, the Land Use and Natural Resource Inventory (LUNR), a state-wide land use and land cover mapping project, used aerial photographs to identify 130 land use and land cover classes. The Tompkins County land use and land cover classification system is designed to be comparable with the LUNR classification system allowing users to analyze changes in land use and land cover over a nearly 50-year time period.
US Census Data
American Community Survey
The American Community Survey (ACS) is an ongoing survey that provides detailed information about our community. It collects data on social, housing, and economic characteristics every year, offering a more up-to-date picture than the traditional decennial census. The ACS provides estimates for various geographic areas, including Tompkins County. For smaller areas, like census tracts and block groups, the ACS accumulates data over three- and five-year intervals to deliver reliable estimates.
Decennial Census of Population and Housing
The U.S. Census Bureau conducts a population count every 10 years. This data provides a valuable snapshot of our community at that specific time.