Site exploration
How Project Scout on the Projects map helps you explore blocks, compare site options, and decide what to study before you save a project.
Site exploration is how you study land on the map before you commit to a project. Project Scout — BuckyAssist in the map dock — runs guided explorations, compares options, and surfaces an early Site summary so you can decide what is worth saving.
For copy-paste prompts, see Prompting BuckyAssist.
Where it lives
Site exploration is available on the Projects map — the map inside your projects workspace when you are studying land. It is not on the general marketplace browse view.
Open the map, frame a site (search an address, drop a pin, or draw an area), then use the Project Scout dock at the bottom of the feasibility panel. You can also use Ask Scout about … from address search when you have a query typed in.
Frame a site on the map
Before Scout can assess a site, you usually frame it on the map:
- Search an address or place name.
- Drop a pin anywhere on the map.
- Draw a polygon to select parcels inside an area you define.
- Accept an AI draft area Scout suggests — it is marked Not saved until you confirm it.
An assembly is multiple parcels combined for development (for example adjacent lots). Scout and the map tools can work on single lots or assemblies.
Explore, assess, and refine
The right-hand panel switches modes as you work:
| Mode | When | What you see |
|---|---|---|
| Explore | No site framed yet | Project Scout expanded — scout the map view or a block around an address |
| Assess | Site framed, Scout collapsed | Full feasibility body for the selection |
| Refine | Site framed, Scout open | Site summary strip plus Scout — dig deeper without losing an in-flight exploration |
What Scout produces
When you ask Scout to explore or compare sites, you may see:
- Map Exploration Plan — a guided flow (focus map, preview a block, highlight lots). Nothing is saved unless you choose Review & create or save a site option on a project.
- Site comparison — when comparing two or more corridors or options, a table with parcels, area, zones, and a verdict (Good / Review / Limited).
- Site options strip — session candidates labeled Unsaved (up to eight). Flip between them on the map.
- Site summary — a short brief after exploration (parcels, area, zone, build envelope hints). This is an early read, not the full feasibility report.
Exploration drafts and AI-suggested polygons are planning aids, not legal boundaries. Confirm dimensions and ownership with official records.
Unsaved vs saved site options
| State | Where | How it becomes durable |
|---|---|---|
| Unsaved | Site options strip on the map | Use Review & create to create a project and attach options |
| Saved | Inside a project | Save option from the site summary or Scout approval card |
Saved site options are named candidates you can reopen, rename, or archive on a project. They often carry a linked feasibility analysis.
Review & create
Review & create on the map toolbar is the main path to turn map work into a project. It creates a project from your current selection and can carry unsaved site options into that project.
Live municipal open data (permits, hydrants, parcel records, and similar) often requires a saved project. If Scout shows Save this site to unlock live city data, use Review & create first.
How exploration connects to zoning and feasibility
- Explore — Scout highlights lots and may show zoning layers on the map.
- Site summary — early read of zone and build envelope for the selection.
- Assess — full feasibility panel when you are ready to judge viability.
- Zoning detail — ask Scout “What can I build here?” or “Review zoning” for rule-level answers grounded in your jurisdiction. See zoning.
Scout on the map does not replace reading bylaws or hiring professionals — it helps you decide which sites are worth studying further.
What Scout does not do on the map
- Browse the design catalog — use main BuckyAssist chat for marketplace designs and completed builds.
- Book professionals — discovery in chat; booking in the marketplace UI.
- Corridor parcel discovery — multi-street comparison is supported; automated corridor-wide parcel discovery is not available yet.
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