You're right, online maps can give you a false sense of accuracy. Had a client once who relied on county GIS maps to plan an addition, only to find out later that the setback was off by nearly three feet. Ended up having to redesign the whole thing—costly mistake. Makes me wonder how often people run into these issues without even realizing it until it's too late... Has anyone dealt with something similar during a renovation or new build?
Definitely feel your pain on this one. I've seen this happen more than once, unfortunately. GIS maps and online tools are great for preliminary research, but they're no substitute for a proper survey. Had a project last year where the client was convinced their fence line was the actual property boundary—turned out they were off by nearly two feet. Not a huge deal until they wanted to build a detached garage right up against the setback line. Had to get creative with the design to make it fit without violating zoning regs.
Did your client end up getting a formal survey afterward, or did you just redesign based on the corrected info from the county? Sometimes I wonder if cities and counties could do a better job clarifying how accurate (or inaccurate) their online resources actually are. Might save people a lot of headaches down the road...
We ran into something similar when we bought our place—online maps showed an easement that wasn't even there anymore. Makes me wonder, shouldn't counties update their online info more regularly, or is that unrealistic given their resources?
"Makes me wonder, shouldn't counties update their online info more regularly, or is that unrealistic given their resources?"
Yeah, I've been scratching my head over this too. I get resource constraints, but shouldn't there at least be a clear timestamp or revision history on these maps? Wouldn't that help clarify things a bit...?
Wouldn't that help clarify things a bit...?
You're definitely onto something with the timestamp idea. I've spent hours trying to figure out if the info I'm looking at is even current—especially when it comes to property lines or easements. I mean, if they're already strapped for resources, wouldn't a simple "last updated" note be a relatively low-effort way to boost clarity? Seems like a small thing that could save everyone a lot of confusion...
