Kitchener's GeoHub is a public platform for exploring and downloading open data, discovering and building apps, and a place to engage with citizens to solve important local issues. Together we can make a great, well-connected community!

Frequently asked questions

What is Open Data?

Open data is data made freely available to everyone to use and republish as they wish, without restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control. According to the definition given by The Open Data Institute, "Open data is data that is made available by organizations, businesses, and individuals for anyone to access, use and share."

What is Kitchener GeoHub?

Kitchener GeoHub is a place for the City of Kitchener to publicly share our open data as well as open data from our regional partners: the City of Waterloo, the City of Cambridge and the Region of Waterloo. The data is to be used by anybody wishing to make a difference in our community by having the ability to connect to a number of datasets.

How can I use this data?

All of the data on Kitchener GeoHub is open data, which means you can do pretty much whatever you want with it. Nevertheless, some of the data may have been created for a different purpose and scale than what you need the data for. It is your responsibility as a user to take into consideration the possible limitations of each data set.

How do I request a new data set?

We are continuing to add more data sets, if you would like to request one, we will strive to make it available. Request Data

Is there a license to use the data?

Our data is provided in a machine-readable format where possible, within the agreements of our "open data license". Please read carefully the terms and conditions of our website.

Can I Publish My Own Data?

No the data on Kitchener's Geohub all comes from municipal sources however you are welcome to share what you have done with the data on our Citizens' Map Gallery. If you have a story you would like to share, send us an email at ✉Open Data Kitchener to let us know about it. We will review and post it to the gallery.

How frequently is the data updated?

We have a variety of data that are updated as we deem appropriate. The last update date is shown in the data overview page on the Hub. How often the data is refreshed can be found in the service description on the service page. If you would like more information send us an email at ✉Open Data Kitchener.

Can I use an API?

Yes, most of the open data sets allow you to use an API with either a REST service or GeoJSON. The Kitchener GeoHub API is driven by Esri. Here are examples using Python and R to access an ArcGIS REST service from our open data.

R with RStudio desktop: You can use R to access an ArcGIS REST services. Here’s an example of bringing in building outlines/footprints for the City of Kitchener.

Python: You can use python to access ArcGIS REST services. Here’s the same example as above, but with python 3.

import requests # for making API requests

import geopandas as gpd # for working with spatial data

import matplotlib.pyplot as plt # for plotting

# Define building outlines GeoJSON API service url

service_url = "https://services1.arcgis.com/qAo1OsXi67t7XgmS/arcgis/rest/services/Building_Outlines/FeatureServer/0/query?outFields=*&where=1%3D1&f=geojson"

# Make the API request

response = requests.get(service_url)

data = response.json()

# Load GeoJSON data into a GeoDataFrame

gdf = gpd.GeoDataFrame.from_features(data['features'])

# View data layer attributes

print(gdf.head().to_string())

# Plot the GeoDataFrame with colours defined by the “CATEGORY” attribute

gdf.plot(column='CATEGORY', legend=True, figsize=(10, 6))

# Show the plot

plt.show()

More information about how to use the data through an API can be found on the Esri site.

How reliable is the information in Kitchener GeoHub?

Data quality is one of the biggest challenges a public sector organization faces with collecting and maintaining data. We have a number of checks and balances in place to make sure the data that is published is of high quality but as this information comes from a variety of sources and providers there are sometimes gaps in knowledge transfer. We encourage residents, businesses and our municipal partners to work with us to help improve our data quality by letting us know of any omissions or mistakes.
If you spot any errors with information, or you have any feedback on how to increase the quality of an individual dataset please us an email ✉Open Data Kitchener.

Who do I contact if I have a comment related to the Kitchener GeoHub?

If you would like to see specific information offered as open data, ask for additional details on existing data sets or have a comment, please let us know by sending us an email at ✉Open Data Kitchener.

Will any more data be added to the Kitchener GeoHub?

Yes, new data sets will be added to our catalogue as they become available. If you would like to see specific information offered as open data, please let us know by sending us an email at ✉Open Data Kitchener or follow our Twitter hashtag #KitchenerGIS.

Why do you not have parcel information?

Our parcel data is under a Teranet license so we are not able to open it up as open data. Teranet is the exclusive provider of Ontario's online property search and registration. Please see Teranet Website for more information.

Who is running Kitchener GeoHub?

Kitchener GeoHub platform is the responsibility of Technology Innovation and Services - GeoSpatial Data and Analytics Section; however, the data comes from across the organization.