After 23 years of service, City of Nanaimo GIS Technologist Christine Blouin will be retiring. A shining star in her industry, she has personified cadastral excellence. LTSA presented Christine with a certificate at a recent ceremony to honour her contributions. Following the presentation, Mark Willoughby was awarded with a certificate commemorating the City of Nanaimo as the 136th adopter of ParcelMap BC.
For the past seven months, Christine diligently crafted a new approach to replace the City’s parcel fabric system, opting to embrace ParcelMapBC. Christine explained, “By adopting ParcelMapBC, the City will benefit from the ability to consistently maintain an accurate parcel fabric on a weekly basis requiring minimal staff input and efficiently ensure the continued integrity of cadastre management.”
Valued for its accuracy, currency and completeness, ParcelMap BC serves as the ‘common canvas’ for geospatial data in the Province and provides economic and social benefits to British Columbians by providing faster and more accurate real property information.
In embracing advances in technology, Christine contributed to the City’s position as a leader in accurate and comprehensive geospatial data. As noted by Mark Willoughby, Supervisor, Geographic Information Systems at the City of Nanaimo, “her guidance and perseverance resulted in the development of a near survey grade cadastral compilation for the City of Nanaimo.”
“We wish Christine all the best in her retirement,” said Brian Greening, Director of ParcelMap BC said, “Her unique blend of skills and commitment to quality leaves a legacy of trusted cadastral data that lives on for all users in ParcelMap BC.”
Equipped with a three year Advanced Diploma in Geospatial Sciences with a Specialization in Cartography and Surveying, Christine began her career as a Cartographic Technologist securing a position with a prominent mapping and surveying firm. Over the next seven years, she played a key role in mapping projects, including the Canada National Topographic 1:50,000 & 1:250,000 Series and the Department of National Defence 1:250,000 Map Series.
Her responsibilities primarily involved meticulously preparing all map layers for printing. In those days, crafting maps was truly an art form. It took many steps to create a map: ground control/survey, aerial photography, analog photogrammetry, and cartography which included scribing, typography/labeling, darkroom and printing.
Expanding her skillset, over two seasons she conducted vertical aerial photography using specialized cameras mounted on a aircraft for smaller mapping projects.
In 1993, she relocated to Nanaimo and with her husband establishing a land surveying company. Over the course of the next decade, she gained invaluable experience in surveying techniques, particularly those necessary for preparing cadastral maps. During this time, advanced software such as MicroSurvey and AutoCAD Map was used to create precise and detailed land survey plans. This period of her career deepened her expertise in surveying and honed her proficiency in utilizing cutting-edge technology for map preparation.
In early 2000s, a new chapter in her career took place as she joined the City of Nanaimo as a GIS Technologist entrusted to update the city cadastre. Spanning five years, the project saw the transition from AutoCAD Map to Munsys software, an innovative asset mapping solution. Munsys proved instrumental in seamlessly integrating existing systems and bridging the gap between Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Today, the City Cadastre resides within ESRI software, namely ArcMap and ArcPro.
Do you know someone who has personified cadastral excellence and made exceptional contributions to ParcelMapBC? Reach out with your story.
City of Nanaimo GIS Supervisor Mark Willoughby and retiring GIS Specialist Christine Blouin (holding certificates) at a ceremony hosted by LTSA’s Sean Lyons, Rob Cutler, Taylor McInnes, Brian Greening and Irshad Jamal
April 2024