This week involved a study of demographic data and spatial distances for a couple who were planning to
move to Alachua County, Florida. We had to download and use data from the USA 2000 Census tracts to determine where the age group of 40 to 49 year olds lived and locations of medain house values. We also had to measure and calculate distances from University of Florida (UF) and from the North Florida Regional Medical Center ( NFRMC) using the euclidean distance tool in Arcmap. We converted census polygon tracts to raster feature classes using the raster tool in Arcmap.
The first map we created for this project was a basemap of Alachua County featuring the 2000 Census tracts.
The next four maps contain the established parameters: distance from NFRMC, distance from UF, percent age range of 40 to 49 years old, and median house values. On the two 'Distance" maps below the lower numbers represent a closer proximity to NFRMC and UF, while on the two "Census tract" maps the higher numbers represent the greater values for percent age range and for median house values.
The next 2 maps contain the weighted overlays of the parameters. The first weighted map gives equal value to all 4 parameters, while the second gives heavier weight (40% each) to distances from NFRMC and UF, and less weight (10% each) to age ranges and median house value. The larger value numbers represent the most preferred areas in which to make housing site selection.
There were many tasks to perform for this lab. Yet the directions for and explanations of the each task were clear and detailed. The only real stumbling block I had was in using the model builder where we had to reverse the value numbers for the distance parameters. The Arcmap program did not reverse the numbers correctly. I did not catch this problem until after I had run the model the first time. I did a redo of Location3.mxd map because of this problem and corrected the numbers manually.
The results of the weighted maps show that in giving more weight to the distances from NFRMC and UF, the couple will have a wider area in Alachua County from which to choose a housing site. As experience has taught me in real estate hunting, expanding your search area may lead you to the unexpected housing site of your dreams!
