When creating parcels from lines, parcel seeds are used to build the parcel.
A parcel seed is the initial state, or seed state, of a parcel. A parcel seed indicates to the build process that a parcel can be built from the lines enclosing the seed.
Parcel seeds can be created in two ways:
- Set the appropriate parcel record as active and click Create Seeds
in the Construct group on the Parcel Record Workflows tab.Seeds will be created for all closed loops of lines in the map extent that are associated with the active parcel record.
- Set the appropriate parcel record as active and use the parcel seed feature template to manually create individual parcel seeds for closed loops of lines.
Using the parcel seed feature template to create seeds gives you more control over where seeds are created and also over which attributes are added for individual seeds.
Once seeds exist for closed loops of lines, parcels can be built from the lines and seeds.
Parcel seeds work as follows:
- A parcel seed is a minimized polygon feature and is stored in the parcel type polygon feature class. The parcel seed has the same schema as the parcel polygon.
The Is Seed field of the parcel type polygon feature class is set to Yes for a parcel seed.
- When using the Create Seeds command to create seeds, seeds are created for all closed loops of lines in the map extent that are associated with the active parcel record. If the enclosed loop contains lines associated with different records, the seed is not created.
- Parcel seeds are automatically created when copying lines to the active parcel record.
- When using the Create Seeds command to create seeds, the parcel type of the parcel seed is derived from the surrounding enclosed loop of lines.
If the enclosed loop contains lines from different parcel types, the seed is not created.
- Seeds can be merged into multipart seeds. If seeds are multipart, multipart parcels are built.
- The parcel seed is associated with the active parcel record. The Created By Record field is populated with the global ID of the active parcel record.
- The parcel seed can be populated with parcel attributes, and these attributes will be transferred to the parcel polygon when it is built.
Select the parcel seed and open the Attributes pane
to add attributes.
Use seeds to construct parcels
Parcels can be constructed from lines and seeds. Parcel seeds have the following benefits when constructing parcels:
- Parcel seeds can store attributes of the parent parcel. Parent parcel attributes are preserved and transferred to the parcel seed when selecting a parcel and copying its boundary lines to the active record. Parcel seed attributes are transferred to parcel polygons when new parcels are built.
- Parcel seeds can be used to prevent the creation of interior hole parcels when creating donut-shaped parcels. Delete the parcel seed in the interior hole.
- Parcel seeds can indicate where slivers and gaps are in copied lines. Parcel seeds are created for all closed loops, including sliver and gap loops.
- Parcel seeds can be deleted, copied and pasted, and regenerated. Use parcel seeds to control which closed loop of lines is built into a parcel.
Parcel seeds can be deleted and re-created at any time. If a parcel seed has been created for a closed loop of lines that should not be built into a parcel, the seed can be selected and deleted. Erroneous or redundant parcel seeds are useful for identifying closed line loops that result from slivers or gaps.
Create seeds for strata parcels
Multiple, overlapping closed loops of lines can be used to build strata parcels. Strata parcels represent floor levels and are also known as condominiums, units, flats, apartments, and basements. Before creating strata parcels, ensure the parcel type supports the storage of strata parcels.
For a closed loop of lines to be recognized as a floor level, their FloorOrder field must be populated with an integer value that represents the floor level, for example, 0, 1, 2. Negative values can be used to represent floor levels that are below ground, for example, -1, -2.
For a seed to be created for an overlapping loop of lines representing a floor level, each line in the loop must have the same matching value in their FloorOrder field. If any line in the loop has a different floor order value, or has no floor order value, the seed is not created. If the FloorOrder field has NULL values for all the lines in the loop, the lines are assumed to be on the same floor and a seed is created.
When seeds are created for loops of overlapping lines, the seed is labeled in the map. In the image below, three seeds have been created for three overlapping loops of lines. Each loop of lines represents a floor level and their FloorOrder field has been populated with the same floor level number.
Once seeds exist for loops of lines, parcels can be built from the lines and seeds. The FloorOrder field of the parcel polygon is populated with the same floor level as the lines used to build the parcel.