Though many Americans today interact mainly with maps that have a “Google” prefix, the Cass County Conservation District is pushing ahead with plans to publish a collection of maps of the physical variety.

With the assistance of the county, the local agency is looking to publish a new revision of the Cass County Plat Book later this year. The 25 to 30 page document will contain maps for each of the county’s 15 townships, broken down by each land parcel, along with a directory of landowners with more than five acres of property, said Justin Miller, director of the conservation district.

“The book allows you to look up the landowner for a certain piece of land,” Miller said. “It’s great for real estate agents, hunters, farmers, people like that.”

The conservation district updates and publishes these plat book every two years, selling them at their office in Cassopolis.

The last edition of the book sold between 200 to 250 copies, Miller said.

“It’s not a fundraiser for us,” he said. “It’s us providing a service to the community.”

In spite of more and more mapping services focusing on the web, plat books still provide an essential service to many in the county, as it’s the most efficient manner of identifying land ownership in county townships, Miller said.

While a longstanding institution of the conservation district, this year the agency ran into some difficulty while attempting to put the document together, Miller said.

In previous years, the district hired a company located in La Porte, Indiana, to compile the property, map and resident information from the county offices for the plat book, with officials traveling to the county to get the documents. However, that company has since gone out of business, requiring the district to seek the services of Mapping Solutions, located in Missouri.

Due to their location, the mapping service is requesting that Cass County release their information directly to the company — a task that will require the county to charge over $5,000, which will be billed to the conservation district.

“We operate on a budget of $10,000 to $11,000 for the entire year,” Miller said. “That would cost us over half our funding.”

Following a meeting with officials that took place Wednesday, the county has agreed to waive half the costs for the work, Miller said. The district is hoping to help cover the remaining bill through the sale of advertisements within the book.

In spite of the situation with the financing of the project, the director said that the county commissioners and others in the government remain committed to the publishing of the updated plat book.

“They’re really supportive of the project,” Miller said. “Their concern is helping us make as money as we can; they’re looking out for our best interests.”

Miller is hoping to have the books published and ready for sale by late November, he said.

People or companies interested in purchasing advertising for the plat book or more information can contact the district at (269) 445-8641.