Hennepin County has given its popular interactive property map an online makeover.
Go here. Click on "Online Services" and then "Property Information Search/Interactive Map."
In addition to the information available on the old map, the new site offers access to maps and documents related to the Public Land Survey system, as well as certificates of survey and official reports related to the use and ownership of land.


In short, the map is more Google-like.


"It's much more user-friendly," says Hennepin County's Taxpayer Services Director Mark Chapin, who notes the improvements "keep pace with evolving map standards."


Completed in-house, the map will be of interest to real estate agents, brokers, title officers, and citizens.
The county says the old version of the map got almost a million visits a year, a number that's likely to increase given the enhanced features of the new map.


Your blogger spent some time recently fiddling with the new map and discovered that her best friend in south Minneapolis pays nearly as much in property taxes as she does. Who knew? (Of course, we St. Paulites have to pay for garbage removal, harrumph!)
Janet Moore covers commercial real estate for the Star Tribune.