I recently completed a dataset containing 51,080 publicly funded broadband locations in Virginia.<\/p>\n
The project involved combining multiple public datasets, including statewide address points, administrative boundaries, broadband funding records, and service qualification results into a single address dataset.<\/p>\n
The largest challenge was not collecting the data but reconciling it. No single source contained all funded locations. Records had to be standardized, deduplicated, geographically validated, merged across multiple funding programs, and linked back to authoritative address points while preserving provenance.<\/p>\n
The final dataset contains:<\/p>\n
\u2022 ADDRESS
\u2022 CITY
\u2022 COUNTY
\u2022 STATE
\u2022 ZIP
\u2022 LATITUDE
\u2022 LONGITUDE
\u2022 SOURCE_COUNTY
\u2022 FUNDING_TYPE
\u2022 SOURCE_DATASET
\u2022 VATI_INCLUDED
\u2022 BEAD_INCLUDED
\u2022 CURRENT_APB_RESULT
\u2022 APB_V2_RESULT
\u2022 APB_can_apb_service_address
\u2022 APB_lookup_status
\u2022 APB_match_quality
\u2022 APB_lookup_type
\u2022 APB_available_bundle_count
\u2022 APB_available_bundle_names
\u2022 APB_lookup_timestamp<\/p>\n
After constructing the dataset, each address was evaluated through the public All Points Broadband ordering system and classified as:<\/p>\n
yes
no
unknown_no_suggestion
unknown_bad_resolution
unknown_error
not_checked<\/p>\n
Several issues emerged during processing, including duplicate addresses appearing in multiple programs, inconsistent formatting across source datasets, addresses resolving to incorrect counties, and addresses resolving to entirely different states.<\/p>\n
Rather than discarding problematic records, unresolved locations were retained and classified separately so that every funded location remained accounted for.<\/p>\n
The project ultimately became an exercise in address matching, GIS integration, provenance tracking, and public infrastructure data management.<\/p>\n
Primary data sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n Virginia Geographic Information Network (VGIN)<\/p>\n https:\/\/vgin.vdem.virginia.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Virginia statewide address points<\/p>\n Virginia Administrative Boundary Dataset<\/p>\n Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) 2022<\/p>\n Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) 2023<\/p>\n Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) 2024<\/p>\n Virginia Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) post challenge locations<\/p>\n Virginia Office of Broadband<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.dhcd.virginia.gov\/broadband<\/a><\/p>\n Virginia Broadband Map<\/p>\n https:\/\/vast.virginia.gov<\/a><\/p>\n Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.nsvregion.org<\/a><\/p>\n Rappahannock Broadband Authority Project Resources<\/p>\n https:\/\/rappbroadband.org\/about-the-project\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n submitted by \/u\/haElwKfeiow6 <\/a>
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