I really only got into OSM in this last year, precipitated by a change in locale, I wholeheartedly set out to get to know my new town of St. Petersburg better. Along the way, I’ve learned a lot about both the town and inevitably about the culture and mechanics of OSM as well.

My primary goals right now are: 1. Make my own locale usable in my maps app as a worthy replacement of google. 2. give back by joining other projects such as Mapping Metro Tulsa (which still needs more hands on deck if we want to finish it within 5 years).

For number 1, I’ve been adding sidewalks and crosswalks to make better walking predictions as well as slowly updating the center of town. It appears that the city has been rapidly changing both in terms of buildings and stores. The city that was mapped a few years ago is remarkably different than the one now. Adding stores and restaurants (as well as simply addresses) is one way of building the metaphorical nest. Additionally I’ve also focused on adding interesting aspects of the city: especially such as the SHINE Murals that are a major face of this place.

As for Number 2, I’m still learning all that I can. There are many gaps in the OSM project: such as truly FOSS, ad and tracker free navigation apps, tons of missing data, proper navigation, etc. With time I think I can contribute more than just drawing in houses for hours.