[Talk-us] Merging a GNIS node with a TIGER way - for a town

Bryce Nesbitt bryce2 at obviously.com
Mon Feb 3 23:28:21 UTC 2014


On Sat, Feb 1, 2014 at 12:59 PM, Sebastian Arcus <s.arcus at open-t.co.uk> wrote:
> All of that doesn't really exist in the US, if my knowledge serves me right.
> Even the smallest of settlements (bigger than a farm) seemed to have started
> in the US around a group of facilities, such as shops, entertainment venues,
> trading facilities etc. - which would directly correspond functionally to a
> town.

In the developing USA, a major milestone was the opening of a post
office.   Thus it was not a real named town until the post office
moved in.

These days in California the creation of dissolution of a municipal
entity is controlled Local Agency Formation Commissions or "LAFCOS"
(Under Title 5, Division 3 of California Government Code the
Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Act).  A new community requires 500 people
represented.  But an older community can wither down to nothing as
long as it continues to meet all other obligations.  Similarly a town
can loose it's post office without loosing status as a municipal
entity.  And it can keep it's name (Town or City) no matter how small
it goes.



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