From Paper Maps to Real-Time Grid Intelligence: How the City of Starke Transformed Its Utility Operations

For decades, the City of Starke, Florida ran its municipal utility the way many small utilities do: on institutional knowledge, veteran linemen, and paper maps. When utility director, David Sparks, came on board, the gaps were immediately clear. The city had no GIS, no digital inventory, and no reliable record of how many poles, transformers, street lights, or third-party attachments were on its grid. As he put it: "We were working blind."

The city partnered with 1898 & Co. to implement ArcGIS by Esri and set out to populate it from scratch. The problem? Collecting that data the conventional way would have taken years and exceeded budget. Internal collection efforts using linemen stalled against the demands of day-to-day operations. A better path was needed.

Through the Esri Partner Network, 1898 & Co. found Noteworthy AI. Our vehicle-mounted camera system collected high-resolution images and GPS data for more than 2,300 overhead distribution assets in just seven hours over two days. AI models processed everything automatically, delivering a full asset inventory, defect detection, vegetation analysis, lighting audits, and third-party attachment counts directly into ArcGIS Online. No manual entry. No extra field personnel. No months-long project timeline.

The results went beyond what Starke expected. The data revealed structural defects and vegetation risks that needed attention, improved storm response planning, and flagged unbilled third-party attachments on city poles, helping Starke recover revenue it had been leaving on the table. The city achieved 80% cost savings compared to conventional data collection methods.

"When I first saw the data, I was pretty well overwhelmed," Sparks said. "What I got made me grin from ear to ear."

Watch the full case study video to hear directly from the City of Starke team on how they went from no digital records to a complete, queryable grid intelligence platform.

To learn more, reach out to our team today.