I am trying to color code the states, cities, zips differently based on certain parameters. As the user zooms in they should be able to see the different colors dynamically painted on the maps. Was able to get this at state level as the boundaries required are available. However, struck at a point to get the boundaries for each city and zips of states. (http://www.usnaviguide.com/)
How to get these details? I have the enterprise licence of Google Maps as well. Do I need to procure any other license to get these boundaries so that I can paint them.
I had also gone through geo-coding service but I do not see any methods supporting to output the boundaries of area.
Thanks in Advance
Best Answer
There is a great resource for state/city spatial data. The Census Bureau releases spatial data in the form of shapefiles, a commonly used type of data for spatial formats. The Census Bureau releases state shapefile boundaries appropriate at varying scales. You might also be able to use cartographic shapefiles for cities as well (there is also the administrative version).
Lastly, with regards to Zip Codes, there is some disagreement with the feasibility of zip code shapefiles. Zip Codes are service routes, and any polygonal shapefile is making some assumptions about the data that don't conform perfectly to actual Zip Code coverages. In other words, technically speaking there is no such thing as a zip code boundary and there never has been. What you see has always been an estimated boundary based on the primarily occurring zip code within an area. That being said, the Census Bureau releases a polygonal shapefile known as a Zip Code Tabulation Area. The problem with this spatial data, as others would be quick to point out, is that it aggregates areas based on a predominantly occurring zip code within a Census Block. Many feel this makes their estimated boundaries too inaccurate.