About

Why we exist.

Planning expertise meets modern technology — built by someone who lived the problem for over a decade before building the solution.

The origin

After spending over a decade as a Transportation Director at a federally-designated MPO, I watched the same problems compound at every agency I knew: federal reporting requirements kept growing, budgets didn't, and lean teams were spending 40+ hours per quarter on manual data entry and spreadsheet calculations.

Meanwhile, I'd been building automation tools and custom dashboards at home. I run my own servers, maintain a homelab, tinker with retro tech, and stay deep in the current landscape — AI, cloud infrastructure, spatial data pipelines. The combination I had wasn't common: real planning knowledge plus real technical ability.

Parker & Vale was born from that intersection — a consulting practice that can do the planning work and build the systems that make it sustainable.

Core thesis

"The organizations that most need modern data tools are exactly the ones generic tech consultants can't serve — because they don't understand federal compliance, documentation burden, or the operational reality of a 12-person agency managing $40M in funds."

Broader than transportation

We started in transportation planning, but the problems we solve aren't transportation-specific. Any organization with complex data, limited staff, and external reporting requirements has the same underlying challenge.

Nonprofits with grant reporting. Workforce development agencies with outcomes tracking. Community development organizations with geographic program data. Small municipalities without a dedicated GIS department. The tools and approach translate directly — only the domain vocabulary changes.

Our approach

Every engagement considers four things: your immediate deliverable need, long-term sustainability (can we automate this so it's easier next time?), your budget constraints (we price for public-sector reality), and your team's capacity (practical solutions that don't require specialized staff to maintain).

Technical stack
SpatialPostGIS, QGIS, GDAL, Maplibre, Leaflet
CloudAWS, Azure, Supabase, Cloudflare
AI / LLMRAG pipelines, private LLM deployments, doc processing
Automationn8n, custom Python, EventBridge, API integration
DataPostgreSQL, Python, data viz, dashboards
InfraDocker, self-hosted services, CI/CD, IaC
DomainMPO/TPO, FTA, NTD, TIP, LRTP, grant compliance
Our approach
01 · Immediate need

Deliver the thing

The plan, the grant, the map, the tool — on time, correctly formatted for your audience.

02 · Sustainability

Can we automate this?

We always ask if next time could be automated. Often the answer is yes.

03 · Budget reality

Priced for public sector

We understand procurement constraints, small budgets, and the value of not wasting either.

04 · Team capacity

Works without specialists

We build tools your team can run. No GIS analyst or developer required to maintain.

Background

Two sides of the same problem

🚦 Transportation & Planning

  • 10+ years as Transportation Director at a federally-designated MPO
  • Led development of Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs)
  • Managed Long-Range Transportation Plans (LRTPs) through federal approval
  • Administered millions in federal transportation and transit funding
  • Secured competitive federal grants — RAISE, CMAQ, HSIP, and others
  • Lived the NTD, TAM, PTASP, and performance measure reporting cycles
  • Navigated board politics, multi-agency coordination, and public engagement

💻 Technical Infrastructure

  • Custom dashboard development — Python, JavaScript, cloud platforms
  • GIS analysis and web mapping — QGIS, PostGIS, Leaflet, Maplibre
  • Private AI and RAG pipeline deployment on self-hosted infrastructure
  • Database design and automation — PostgreSQL, AWS, Docker
  • Self-hosted homelab: servers, networking, retro tech repurposing
  • Workflow automation and API integration — n8n, Python, webhooks
  • Cloud infrastructure — AWS, Azure, Supabase, Cloudflare
Mission

Help organizations deliver excellent public service
without burning out their staff.

Most organizations aren't failing because of bad intentions or lazy people. They're failing because their systems are broken and no one has had the time, budget, or technical knowledge to fix them. That's what we do.

Automate

Time-consuming compliance tasks that shouldn't require human attention

🗺️

Illuminate

Geographic and operational data that currently lives in inaccessible formats

🔧

Build

Tools that keep working long after the engagement ends

📋

Document

Systems designed to survive leadership transitions, not depend on them

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