How to do areas and ratios on many sites simultaneously

Use the precinct app to create area breakdowns fast.

Quick Links

🦒 In-App Guide (coming soon)

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Video Intro to the Precinct App

• Guide Contents

Create Scenarios using Drawing Layers

Precinct works based on comparing geometry drawn on separate drawing layers.

Create a new Drawing Layer using the New Layer button in the draw palette.

This creates a new layer and sets it to the 'Active Layer'. All geometries you create will be created on the currently active layer.

Giraffe Urban Calculations shows the areas for all layers that are on. To show areas for different options turn the layers you don't want to consider to fully invisible. (You'll see a closed eye icon).

Remember you can use views to control layer visibility! Layers can be used in the normal view and also in the 3D view.

<aside> 💡 Learn more about managing scenarios with Create and Manage Options

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Best practice set up for Precinct is:

1. Create layers per scenario you plan to compare:
   1. One for geometry, like buildings, roads, parking, and landscape
      • Create multiple geometry layers if you want to compare geometry sitting in the same parcel (IE - multiple building configurations for the same site)
      • You only need a single geometry layer if you are comparing geometry sitting on multiple disconnected parcels
   2. One for Polygons. The polygons should outline the parcels you wish to compare. This is how Precinct will understand to calculate your coverage metrics from.
      • Create a single parcel outline if you are only using one site
      • Create multiple if you are comparing multiple sites.

Example of Disconnected Parcels:

Example of a single parcel:

1. Add the Lot Number (lotNumber) from Properties to all of the parcel polygons to wish to analyze.
2. Enter a value. This could be as simple as “Option 1, Option 2” or could reflect real-world municipality lot numbers.

<aside> 💡 Note: Precinct will count geometry fully contained within the polygon you set with the lotNumber property. If you move geometry from one parcel to another, precinct will recognize that geometry in the new parcel only.

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Compare Scenarios with Precinct

Use the Precinct app to organize the geometry you added to drawing layers into side-by-side Scenarios to make metric comparisons.

Add the Precinct App