Last Thursday we made a change to our database. We changed the data type of the permit number field (pmt_number). This field has always been a numeric type. Initially we thought this would work great because it sorted correctly and cities in the areas we covered used numeric values only. Over time it has become apparent that many cities use both numeric and text characters in their permit numbers. For some time I have been removing any non numeric characters from the permit numbers before we published in order to accomodate the differences.
No more. The change in this field will allow us to show the permit numbers exactly as they appear on the permits. This will provide better accuracy for you, our clients, as you search the data and reference the permits with the actual cities or in other situations.
This may have an impact on you if you automatically import the electronic file into your own system. So please be aware of the change.
Also, we now offer a CSV file for download from our website. This is a very common format for sharing data and importing and exporting that data. We plan to move completely to this format by the end of the year. Many of you will not be affected because you have been converting the old .dbf file to csv before you use it anyway. This just eliminates that conversion step. However, some will have to do some work to accomodate this new format. Please let us know if you have any questions or may need the legacy .dbf version beyond the first of they year.
Thank you,
Construction Monitor is the industry source for accurate, timely and complete building permit information in the Western United States. Our construction leads include key project data to help building professionals such as general contractors, sub contractors and suppliers to better target and reach new customers
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