Arches Cultural Resources Management Database

In partnership with Legion GIS and the Getty Institute, PRESERVE/scapes created IRIS, a web-accessible, geospatially enabled database for the management of an historic federally-owned campus in Washington, DC. The website provides a one-stop shop for both public access to data on historic resources and the federal agency’s management of internal procedures and sensitive data. IRIS is a central repository for property data, project data, policy and planning documents, and archival materials.

IRIS provides a one-step site analysis for project due diligence for Section 106 compliance. A single map search in IRIS reveals...

  • Historic and cultural resources to be affected

  • Applicable planning areas and associated recommendations/guidelines

  • Relevant archival materials including historic photographs

  • Previous compliance activities conducted within the same area

  • Archaeological sites or identified archaeological potential

Map searches can be conducted by polygon, center line, or radius to accommodate typical types of project areas. The unique historic map overlay feature allows current resource and project data to be viewed within the context of historic conditions.

IRIS accommodates all aspects of Cultural Resources Management, including:

  • Manages comprehensive data on a diverse range of physical assets from buildings/objects/structures and view sheds, to landscapes and archaeological sites. All asset types can be georeferenced and viewed in layers on the map view.

  • Tracks and archives compliance work flows (NHPA, NEPA, etc.) and allows project data to be accessed by location.Applicable reviews and procedures

    • Project status and milestones

    • Stakeholder contact information

    • Meeting and correspondence records

    • Area of potential effect and/or project boundaries

    • Applicable guidelines, policies, regulatory citations, etc.

  • Transfers planning data from static documents to an interactive digital platform to allow information to be easily accessed and updated.

    • Cultural landscape units

    • Design guidelines and preservation recommendations

    • Zoning and land use

    • Infrastructure

    • Historic designations and easement boundaries

  • Centralizes digitized archival material and references to relevant materials not yet digitized or available through other sources.

    • Compliance documents

    • Reports and assessments

    • Photographs

    • Maps and plans

    • Building drawings

    • Oral histories or other audio files