← Back to Geo Unit Assigner

How to Use Geo Unit Assigner

This tool needs three files: a ward boundary, a household directory, and a leaders list. Here's how to create each one.

1

Create the Ward Boundary (GeoJSON)

The ward boundary tells the app which households are inside the ward and defines the visible area on the map. You'll draw the boundary as a polygon using the free geojson.io tool.

  1. Go to geojson.io in your browser.
  2. Use the search box (top-right of the map) to find your ward's general area.
  3. Click the Draw Polygon tool in the right-side toolbar (rectangle icon).
  4. Click around the perimeter of the ward boundary on the map, placing a point at each corner or curve.
  5. Double-click the final point to close and finish the polygon.
  6. In the top menu click Save › GeoJSON to download the file.
  7. Rename the downloaded file to something like ward-boundary.geojson.
Tip: Ward boundary maps are often available from ward leadership or the stake clerk. If you already have a KMZ or Shapefile, tools like MyGeodata Converter can convert them to GeoJSON.
geojson.io Draw Polygon tool in toolbar
geojson.io — click the Draw Polygon tool (rectangle icon) in the right toolbar.
geojson.io polygon being drawn
Click around the ward perimeter to place points. Double-click to close the polygon, then Save › GeoJSON.
2

Export the Household Directory (PDF)

The household directory provides the list of ward members and their addresses. Export it as a PDF from LCR.

  1. Sign in to lcr.churchofjesuschrist.org.
  2. Navigate to Membership › Member Directory.
  3. Select the Households tab.
  4. Click the Show dropdown and check only Address (uncheck all others).
  5. Click Print and choose Save as PDF (or "Print to PDF") as the destination.
Tip: Make sure only "Address" is checked in the Show dropdown — extra columns can cause parsing errors.
LCR Member Directory screenshot
LCR Member Directory — Households tab with only Address checked in the Show dropdown.
3

Create the Geo Unit Leaders List (CSV)

The leaders list defines who leads each geo unit and where they live. Create it as a simple CSV file with two columns.

  1. Open a spreadsheet application (Excel, Google Sheets, etc.) or a plain text editor.
  2. Create two columns with the headers name and address.
  3. Add one row per geo unit leader — their full name and home address.
  4. Optionally add an area_name column to label each unit on the map and in the Excel export (e.g. "North", "East Side").
  5. The name column is used as the leader label; area_name appears as a section header.
  6. Save the file as a .csv file (e.g. ward-leaders.csv).
name,address,area_name John Smith,"123 Main St, Anytown WA 98000",North Jane Doe,"456 Oak Ave, Anytown WA 98001",North Bob Johnson,"789 Pine Rd, Anytown WA 98002",South Mary Williams,"321 Elm St, Anytown WA 98003",South
Tip: Use the most complete address possible including zip code — this improves geocoding accuracy. If a leader's address can't be geocoded it will be silently skipped, so double-check for typos.
Tip: If creating the file in a text editor instead of a spreadsheet, wrap each address in double quotes — addresses contain commas which would otherwise break the CSV format. For example: "123 Main St, Anytown WA 98000"

Note: the data shown below is randomly generated and does not represent real individuals.

Leaders CSV in Excel
Leaders list open in Excel — two columns: name and address. Save as CSV when done.
4

Save Your Edits with the Changes File

Geocoding takes time and you may need to annotate the list over multiple sessions — marking who to include, adding HAM radio call signs, moving members to specific areas, or excluding members outside the ward. The Changes File lets you save those edits and carry them forward every time you re-run the tool from a fresh PDF, without re-entering your annotations.

First run — generating the changes file

  1. Run the tool with your boundary, PDF directory, and leaders list as normal.
  2. After the map appears, click Download Changes XLSX (the purple button).
  3. Open geo_unit_changes.xlsx in Excel. Rows are color-coded by geo unit so you can see at a glance which area each member is currently assigned to.
  4. The file has five columns: Name, Address, Geocode, HAM, and Area. All assigned members start with Geocode=Y; the HAM and Area columns are blank.
  5. Make your edits:
    • Set Geocode to N for any member you want excluded from future runs.
    • Enter a call sign (e.g. KD7XYZ) in HAM for radio operators — their map pin will change to a triangle.
    • Enter an area_name value (e.g. Canterbury) in Area to force that member into a specific geo unit, overriding the proximity calculation.
  6. Save the file. You can keep it as .xlsx or save as .csv — both are accepted.

Subsequent runs — applying your changes

  1. Export a fresh PDF from LCR as usual.
  2. On the upload form, fill in the three required files (boundary, PDF, leaders) as normal.
  3. In the Changes File field, select your saved geo_unit_changes.xlsx.
  4. Click Generate Assignments. The tool will:
    • Apply your Geocode, HAM, and Area values to matching households (matched by address).
    • Exclude any member whose address is marked N.
    • Force-assign any member with an Area value directly into that geo unit, regardless of distance or ward boundary.
    • Include any new members added to the ward since the last run — they won't be in the changes file, so they default to included.
  5. After the run, download a fresh changes file to capture new members and carry forward existing edits.
Tip: The Area value must match the area_name in your leaders CSV exactly (case-insensitive). For example, if your leaders CSV has area_name=Canterbury, enter Canterbury (not the leader's name). Forced assignments bypass both the max-distance limit and the ward boundary check.
Tip: Matching is done by address, not by name — so it works correctly even when the PDF combines spouses (e.g. "Smith, John & Jane"). You don't need to cover every member; new ward members are always included by default unless later marked N.
5

Focus on an At-Risk Subset

If you need to prioritize outreach to a specific group — elderly members, those who haven't been contacted recently, or others who need extra attention — you can generate a focused map showing only those individuals.

  1. Run the tool normally for your full ward and click Download Excel to save the full assignment report.
  2. Open the Excel file. Find the Geocode column and change any member you want to exclude to N (or delete their row entirely).
  3. Save the file as .xlsx or .csv.
  4. Return to the tool and upload this file as the Ward Directory input instead of the original PDF.
  5. The map and assignment report will only include members marked Y in the Geocode column.
Tip: The Geocode column accepts Y, Yes, True, 1, or X as truthy values. Blank cells are treated as not included when uploading a CSV/XLSX directory directly (without a PDF).