Dec 21, 2021 2 min read

The Greene County Salary Board approved various hirings, retirements, resignations and other motions during its Dec. 16 meeting, including the hiring of a Geographic Information System coordinator.

The board approved the hiring of Emmett Rafferty as GIS coordinator effective Dec. 13. Commissioner Mike Belding said Rafferty’s salary and benefits will be paid through the county’s 911 department and grant funding.

According to the county’s website, the GIS coordinator provides mapping services related to planning and access to the county’s online property assessment database and is responsible for the 911 Center response mapping.

“The Geographic Information System is becoming more important in business and government,” Belding said. “GIS is a system that creates, manages, analyzes and maps all types of data. GIS connects data to a map, integrating location data – where things are – with all types of descriptive information – what things are like there. This provides a foundation for mapping and analysis that is used in science and almost every industry.”

Belding said the county previously had a contracted vendor providing this service, and by creating the position and hiring its own coordinator the county believes it is more effective – and cost effective – to have what he calls “an in-house capability.”

Rafferty’s services will be shared between various county departments, including 911, planning, assessment and the Community Development Block Grant and Home Investment Partnership programs, Belding said.