GovEx<\/a> is a three-year program funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The goal of the organization involves aiding municipalities with the collection and analysis of data, so that \u201cgovernments\u00a0[can] effectively use data in order to make informed decisions on services that improve people’s lives.\u201d The program also connects 120 partner municipalities across the country, helping each city manage data and share strategies.<\/p>\n\u201cWe can take what we learn, document it, and now, we\u2019ve got this cohort of cities that can replicate this work, who are dealing with the same issues,\u201d explains Beth Blauer, executive director of GovEx.<\/p>\n
Baltimore Blight<\/strong><\/p>\nSince 1950, the number of people residing in Baltimore\u2019s has steadily declined, with its 620,000 residents representing a third of the city\u2019s peak population. As shipyards closed and manufacturing moved overseas, Baltimore\u2019s residents left for greener pastures. With its rich history and slow downward spiral \u2013 the city once housed over 1 million people \u2013 Baltimore provides a test case for the circumstances and challenges associated with urban decay.<\/p>\n
With rows and rows of abandoned buildings, Baltimore\u2019s urban blight is more than just an eyesore, it\u2019s a matter of public safety and an economic liability. With the possibility of over 30,000 unoccupied buildings, the city\u2019s plan to demolish and revitalize struggling neighborhoods requires lots of boots on the ground so each vacant unit can be flagged, cited, auctioned and freed for redevelopment.<\/p>\n
An Embarrassment of Riches<\/strong><\/p>\nBaltimore is not just rich in vacant housing, it also has vast stores of data from disparate sources. From water use to utility records and postal delivery information, the city can often triangulate sources to create a comprehensive overview of population distribution.<\/p>\n
“Like a lot of sectors in government, we have this glut of data now,” says John David Evans, the city’s director of analytics and strategic planning in the Wired article. “We’re producing more than we can intelligently understand, and we don’t have the statistical tools to extract from the data what we need.”<\/p>\n
The need to analyze and utilize the data is what prompted Braverman to contact Budav\u00e1ri. Budav\u00e1ri\u2019s vision involves collecting all the different data streams and pulling them together to create an algorithm that can identify current vacancies and predict whether nearby buildings will face a similar fate. Ultimately, Budav\u00e1ri and his team hope to produce heat maps to identify new and emerging issues and help the city direct funding and resources more strategically.<\/p>\n
“It’s about how they can use the available dollars to make the biggest impact on the quality of life in the city,” says Budav\u00e1ri. “The issue is really how do you measure the quality of life?”<\/p>\n
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e the Milky Way. Instead, the same modeling and algorithms used to map galaxies is being repurposed for a more pedestrian purpose: urban vacancies. Astrophysicists and city planners are working together to find new ways to manage abandoned buildings and future development.<\/p>\n