Data Use & Privacy

What this prototype does

The prototype sends an entered street address to its server-side lookup route. That route queries a public City of Fort Lauderdale parcel-service endpoint and returns a diagnostic response. It may show a municipal parcel candidate using limited street fields.

The parcel lookup requests only FOLIO, StreetNumber, StreetName, and Label. It does not request or display parcel geometry.

If an operator configures a separate private index from Florida's public 2026 preliminary Broward assessment roll, the report may show the primary structure's actual year built. It is labeled as an appraisal-record screening fact, not an inspection or insurance determination. The index contains parcel IDs and years only, not owner names, mailing addresses, or WaterWise search history. Without that index or a matching year, the report says the fact is unavailable.

For a single exact parcel match, or a candidate the operator confirms, the prototype also queries the public City of Fort Lauderdale Building Permits GIS layer by parcel. It requests only case key, permit number, type, status, description, submitted and approved dates, parcel ID, and site address. That layer also publishes owner, applicant, and contractor names and contractor phone numbers; WaterWise never requests or displays those fields.

For the same confirmed parcel, the server briefly uses the parcel's outline and center point, in memory only, to query FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer (flood zone, FIRM panel, and letters of map change) and the USGS Elevation Point Query Service, and compares FEMA's zone with the City's published flood-zone layer. The outline and coordinates are not shown or intentionally logged or stored by this application. Hosting and upstream request logs need separate review. The USGS value is a screening ground elevation, not the elevation of any home or floor, and FEMA mapping is not an official flood-zone determination or insurance rating.

The printable report page sends the address in the request body, not the page address, so it does not appear in browser history. Reports are built on request and are not saved; printing or saving a PDF is done in your own browser.

What WaterWise does not do

• It does not create user accounts or accept payments.
• It does not operate a customer database or search-history database.
• It does not intentionally retain submitted addresses or lookup results.
• It does not request owner names, contact information, or profiles.
• It does not verify ownership, title, boundaries, or parcel identity.
• It does not provide property, lending, insurance, investment, safety, or purchase recommendations.

Candidate results and limitations

The lookup first tries a strict street-field match. If that returns no record, it may perform a constrained fallback query and display a possible candidate. A fallback candidate is not a verified match.

Public records may be incomplete, delayed, inconsistently formatted, or inaccurate. A source response does not establish ownership, title, legal boundaries, permit history, waterfront status, flood exposure, structural condition, safety, eligibility, or suitability for any purpose.

Source and future use

The current prototype uses public City of Fort Lauderdale ArcGIS parcel and building-permit endpoints, FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer, and the USGS Elevation Point Query Service. A permit record that is not found in the records searched does not establish that no permit exists or that work is unpermitted. Any expansion to additional sources, stored data, public access, marketing, payments, or commercial reports requires separate source-terms, privacy, security, and legal review.