Permits to open data
Nightly, changed OpenGov permit records are upserted into the city's permits dataset.
Open data & public infoConnector
Socrata open data integration (Tyler Data & Insights)
Socrata, now Tyler Data & Insights, runs open-data portals for many US cities and counties. Residents, journalists and other agencies query datasets of permits, service requests, budgets and inspections through the SODA API.
Pre-built connector
Socrata / Tyler Data & Insights
- Tier
- Pre-built connector
- Category
- Open data & public info
- Sign-in
- Username and password, or API key as basic sign-in
- Paging
- offset
§ Overview
What connecting Socrata does.
SentraBridge reads dataset rows and writes to datasets with upserts by row ID, so nightly publishing doesn't create duplicates. Flows choose which fields go public before writing. Rows pass through in memory and SentraBridge doesn't store them.
- Dataset rows: Read rows from a dataset by its ID.
- Changes only: Read only rows updated since the last run.
- Upserts: Write rows, updating existing ones by row ID.
What SentraBridge can do with Socrata / Tyler Data & Insights
| resource | read | write | changes only | fields |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dataset rows (set the dataset variable, e.g. abcd-1234) | list | create | yes | Row ID, Updated |
§ Use cases
What cities connect Socrata for.
311 requests for the public
Closed service requests, without reporter details, are published each night.
Budget lines from the ERP
Adopted and amended budget lines from Munis are published after each budget update.
Read another agency's dataset
A county or state dataset is read and loaded into the city database for analysis.
§ Examples
Flows that use Socrata / Tyler Data & Insights.
§ How it works
How to connect Socrata
- 01Get accessCreate a Socrata API key ID and secret with edit rights on the dataset.
- 02Add the connectionUse them as username and password in the connection.
- 03Preview real recordsAdd your app token as an X-App-Token header.
- 04Turn it onSet the dataset ID, like abcd-1234, and preview rows.
§ Often connected with
Socrata and the rest of city hall.
Systems cities commonly connect with Socrata, each with its own connector page.
Sentra 311§ FAQ
Socrata integration questions
Does Socrata have an API?
Yes. The SODA API reads and writes dataset rows. Writes with a row ID are upserts.
How do I publish permits to our open-data portal automatically?
Read permits changed since the last run, keep only public fields, and upsert them into the dataset each night. A template does this for OpenGov.
How do we keep private data off the portal?
The Map step sends only the fields you choose. Rules can also drop records, such as cases involving minors.
§ Next
Related connectors
Connect Socrata / Tyler Data &… to the rest.
We'll set up a workspace with your systems in a sandbox and build your first flow with you.