Client overview In early 2018, Florida’s Region 1 embarked on a groundbreaking initiative to pilot a regional deployment of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Next Generation Core Services (NGCS) to power its transition to Next Generation 9-1-1. This ambitious effort aimed to establish a scalable model for the entire state, one that would streamline GIS data creation and remediation, and long-term support through centralized regional repositories. The project quickly became a cornerstone for advancing public safety infrastructure across Florida. Nestled in Florida’s panhandle, Santa Rosa County, home to nearly 200,000 residents, took a significant step toward modernizing its public safety infrastructure in 2020. That year, the county’s Emergency Management team partnered with DATAMARK Technologies to upgrade its geospatial framework to support advanced 9-1-1 call routing and align with NENA standards. This collaboration marked a pivotal step toward enhancing emergency response capabilities through smarter, location-based data. Challenge Santa Rosa County faced an urgent and complex challenge: transitioning from legacy 9-1-1 systems to Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) as part of Florida Region 1’s regional GIS deployment initiative. This shift not only demanded new technology, but also a deep understanding of how GIS underpins modern public safety operations. Santa Rosa’s IT and geospatial team approached the NG9-1-1 transition with determination, despite the complexity of aligning local data to new standards under a tight timeline. While the process required specialized knowledge and significant effort, the team quickly began building the expertise needed to support the county’s public safety goals. With competing priorities that limited availability, they recognized the importance of strategic partnerships to ensure their geospatial data could be overhauled and maintained in accordance with NENA standards—setting the stage for a successful modernization effort. The Plan Recognizing the complexity of NG9-1-1 standards and the importance of precision in public safety data, Santa Rosa County took a strategic and forward-leaning approach by partnering with DATAMARK Technologies. This collaboration wasn’t just about outsourcing – it was about empowering the county’s GIS team with the knowledge, tools, and support needed to lead a successful transformation. DATAMARK Technologies began by educating Santa Rosa’s IT and geospatial professionals on the critical role GIS plays in Next Generation 9-1-1 systems. This included training on how accurate geospatial data directly impacts emergency call routing and location validation, and how compliance with NENA standards ensures interoperability and reliability across jurisdictions. To bring Santa Rosa’s data into full alignment with NG9-1-1 requirements, DATAMARK delivered a suite of specialized services: ACE (Address Comparison and Evaluation): A foundational evaluation of the county’s address data to identify new and missing address candidates. Modified GIS Data Remediation: DATAMARK Technologies recommended GIS data corrections to Santa Rosa and the county’s GIS team made the updates. Boundary Facilitation Meetings: These collaborative sessions helped eliminate overlaps and gaps between neighboring jurisdictions in Florida and Alabama. To ensure long-term data integrity, Santa Rosa adopted DATAMARK’s cloud-native validation & editing solution (VEP) – a powerful platform that runs over 250 NG9-1-1 validations on an unlimited basis. VEP enables the county to continuously monitor and validate its GIS data, ensuring it remains compliant with evolving standards. Further strengthening their operational capacity, Santa Rosa leveraged DATAMARK’s Managed Services. Through biweekly support, DATAMARK assists with uploading, validating, and downloading markups from VEP-effectively multiplying the county’s workforce and allowing the GIS team to stay focused on strategic initiatives while maintaining data accuracy and compliance. Results Santa Rosa County achieved measurable improvements in its GIS data readiness for NG9-1-1, accomplishing a 93% reduction in data anomalies and resolved boundary inconsistencies with neighboring jurisdictions, enhancing both local and regional coordination. “The process of working through the review of VEP anomalies has had a single net result and that is making our GIS better.” – Joe Thornton, GIS and Software Supervisor, Santa Rosa County, FL, Board of County Commissioners Today, Santa Rosa continues to use VEP as its go-to solution for GIS data maintenance, enabling unlimited validations and seamless updates. Supported by Managed Services, the county receives ongoing expert assistance with biweekly data workflows, ensuring its GIS remains accurate, compliant, and ready to support evolving public safety needs. This sustained collaboration reflects Santa Rosa’s commitment to excellence and its leadership in modernizing emergency response infrastructure. “If the effort of this collaboration with DATAMARK results in one 9-1-1 call being routed successfully where it would have failed before and one life is saved, then all the time and effort is worth it. We want to empower our 9-1-1 counterparts with the best data possible for the important work that they are doing, and we’ve already heard multiple stories from the emergency services staff of 9-1-1 calls being routed successfully because of this effort.” – Joe Thornton, GIS and Software Supervisor, Santa Rosa County, FL, Board of County Commissioners In their own words: Check out our interview with Joe Thornton, GIS and Software Supervisor, Santa Rosa County, FL, Board of County Commissioners
