Validating permit addresses with geocoding before they reach the map
Bad addresses put permits in the wrong place on the map, or nowhere at all. How to geocode, check and route permit addresses automatically, and when to use the Census or Esri geocoder.
Permit systems collect addresses from applicants, counter staff and contractors. Some are perfect. Others have a missing suffix, a unit number in the wrong field, or a street that changed names years ago. When those permits go to a GIS layer, the bad ones land in the wrong place or don't appear at all.
A short validation stage between the permit system and the map catches most of these before anyone sees them.
What can go wrong with an address
- Typos and abbreviations: "N Fine Av" and "North Fine Avenue" are the same place to a person, not always to a system.
- Missing parts: no street type, no ZIP, no directional.
- Units and suites: "Suite 200" in the street line confuses many matchers.
- Outside the city: an address that matches perfectly, in the wrong county.
- Swapped coordinates: latitude and longitude reversed, putting a permit in the ocean.
- Wrong coordinate system: State Plane feet treated as degrees.
The validation flow
A typical flow looks like this:
- 01Read permitsChanged since the last run
- 02GeocodeAddress to coordinates
- 03Check the matchScore and area
- 04Make a map pointReady for the layer
- 05Send to the layerGood matches only
- Read permits changed since the last run. Only new and changed records need geocoding.
- Geocode each address. A Look up step calls the geocoder and adds coordinates and a matched address.
- Check the match. Keep good matches; send the rest to review.
- Check the location. Confirm the point falls inside your city or county and isn't swapped.
- Make a map point and send it. Good permits go to the GIS layer.
Census or Esri?
Two geocoders cover most US city needs.
| US Census Geocoder | Esri World Geocoder | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free public service | Usually billed; check your Esri agreement |
| Key needed | No | Yes, an ArcGIS key |
| Match score | Match or no match | A score you can filter on |
| Coverage | US street addresses | Broader, with points of interest |
| Fits best | Smaller cities, standard addresses | Cities already on ArcGIS |
Some cities use both: the free geocoder first, and a second pass for the addresses it couldn't match. If your county maintains its own address points or locator, that is often the most accurate option of all.
If you use a paid geocoder, check how your agreement counts results you keep in a layer or table. Storing results can be priced differently from one-off lookups.
Decide what "good enough" means
Write the rules down with your GIS team:
- Match score: for example, keep only matches above a threshold you agree on.
- Match type: a rooftop or parcel match is better than a street-segment or ZIP-code match.
- Area: points must fall inside your city's extent.
- Required parts: a street number must be present.
These rules become the settings of the flow, so they are applied the same way every night.
Route the failures, don't drop them
A permit that fails geocoding is still a real permit. Don't silently skip it. Send it to a review list for GIS or permit staff, with:
- The permit number and the address as entered.
- Why it failed: no match, low score, outside the area.
- A link back to the permit record.
Someone fixes the address in the permit system, and the next run picks it up automatically, because it changed since the last run.
Coordinates from other systems
Some permit systems already hold coordinates. Check them anyway:
- Are they in latitude and longitude, or a State Plane or UTM system? Convert them to what the layer expects.
- Are any swapped? A simple area check catches these.
- Are any zero or empty? Treat them as missing and geocode the address instead.
Privacy
Geocoding sends addresses to an outside service. For permits, that is usually fine; the address is often public. For other records, such as code complaints or social services cases, think about whether the address should leave your network at all. A local locator or the county's address points avoid the question.
In SentraBridge
SentraBridge has connectors for the US Census Geocoder and the Esri World Geocoder, used in a Look up step. The Check locations step catches points outside your area and swapped coordinates, Reproject converts State Plane and UTM, and Make map point prepares records for an ArcGIS layer. Addresses are sent only to the geocoder you choose and aren't stored. See GIS and maps.