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Project 1: Decision Support with a GIS
Jim Kompanek
Introduction:
Upon graduation, two theoretical students enrolled in an ice Cream Science program were determined to go into business by opening their own Jen and Barry's Ice Cream. Due to complexity of identifying an adequate location for such a business, both Jen and Barry established a list of criteria to aid in their determination. This included both Business and Quality of Life Criteria:
Business Criteria:
Greater than 500 farms for milk production;
A labor pool of at least 25,000 individuals between the ages of 18 to 64 years;
An interstate within 20 miles.
Quality of Life Criteria:
A low crime index of less than or equal to 0.02;
At least one recreation area within 10 miles;
A population density of less than 150 individuals per square mile;
A location near a university or college.
Analysis:
To aid in the decision-making process, the criteria can be converted into attribute and spatial queries with ArcMap. Forty potential communities in Pennsylvania were available for a potential dairy site (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream prior to queries. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only.
The first queries conducted to determine potential localities, included all communities with a population density of less than 150 individuals per square mile with a population of greater than or equal to 25,000 people between the ages of 18 to 64. Of the 40 potential communities, 17 met these prerequisites (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream with a population density of < 150 person/square mile and a population greater than or equal to 25,000 individuals between 18 and 64 years old. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. Please click on above image for full size graphic. All place names are fictional. Used here for educational purposes only.
Of the 17 communities identified above (see Figure 2), two more queries were utilized to further isolate a potential host community. This involved identifying all communities with a university or college, as well as a crime index of less than or equal to 0.02. Nine potential sites localities were identified as result of this query (Figure 3).
Figure 3. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream containing a university or college, as well as a crime index of less than or equal to 0.02. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only. Please click on above image for full size graphic.
Of the nine previously identified sites, the next query involved identifying those within close proximity of an interstate. This was accomplished by establishing a buffer of 20 miles, to determine which potential host-communities had an interstate highway within a 20 mile radius. Seven potential sites met this prerequisite (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream located with an interstate located within a 20 mile radius. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only.
Conclusion:
The final criterion queried involved identifying all potential communities within close proximity of a recreational area. This involved identifying all localities with a recreational area within a 10 mile radius. Of the seven potential sites identified above (see Figure 4), four met all of the criteria (Figure 5). These included: Whitney, Geyersville, Nittanytown, and Driggs.
Figure 4. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream located with an interstate located within a 20 mile radius. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only.
Follow Up (Try This!):
As previously mentioned, according to the theoretical parameters, the communities of Whitney, Geyersville, Nittanytown, and Driggs would meet all the prerequisites of a Jen and Barry's Ice Cream. The remaining localities can be further queried to determine an ideal business location. Data obtained from King (2006) contained attribute data for 451 hydrology features, 224 of which were river or lakes, which were exported to a shape file prior to the query. If the potential site had to be located within 10 miles of a river or lake, Nittanytown would be excluded (Feature 5).
Figure 4. Potential host-communities for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream located with a lake or river located within a 10 mile radius. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only.
The final criterion involved a query to determine which of the remaining communities were within 40 miles of a landmark. Only one remaining community met this requirement. The community of Driggs would be the final proposed site locality which met all of the requirements.
Figure 5. Final potential host-community for Jen and Barry's Ice Cream located within 10 miles of a landmark. Data obtained from King (2006), as viewed with ESRI ArcMap 9.1. All place names are fictional. Please click on above image for full size graphic. Used here for educational purposes only.
References Cited:
King, Beth