Building Vacancy Detection With GeoAI Using Proxy Data in a Constrained and Mixed Access Environment

ABSTRACT This article presents a GeoAI model designed to predict building vacancy in Ireland using only open and licensed‐but‐accessible datasets. It operates under mixed‐access, proxy‐based conditions, as legal and technical barriers frequently restrict access to proprietary data like utility consumption. Our model achieved a 0.379 F1‐score and 0.348 F1‐score under temporal holdout conditions, establishing a new baseline, with performance proving stronger in urban areas compared to rural regions. These results suggest limitations when relying solely on the available proxy data, highlighting the difficulty of detecting vacancy in environments where utility data are not readily available. This study prioritizes a schema‐agnostic, reproducible architecture and governance framework over model complexity to handle the realities of data scarcity and interoperability in urban planning.

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Publication Details

Journal
Transactions in GIS
Published
2026-10-27
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/tgis.70433
Primary Topic
Urbanization and City Planning
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Building Vacancy Detection With GeoAI Using Proxy Data in a Constrained and Mixed Access Environment

Katsiaryna Bahamazava, Junli Liang, Gavin McArdle, Rob Brennan et al.
2 links
Transactions in GIS
Urbanization and City Planning
article

Building Vacancy Detection With GeoAI Using Proxy Data in a Constrained and Mixed Access Environment

Katsiaryna Bahamazava, Junli Liang, Gavin McArdle, Rob Brennan, Milo Dennehy, Darragh Redmond
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article presents a GeoAI model designed to predict building vacancy in Ireland using only open and licensed‐but‐accessible datasets. It operates under mixed‐access, proxy‐based conditions, as legal and technical barriers frequently restrict access to proprietary data like utility consumption. Our model achieved a 0.379 F1‐score and 0.348 F1‐score under temporal holdout conditions, establishing a new baseline, with performance proving stronger in urban areas compared to rural regions. These results suggest limitations when relying solely on the available proxy data, highlighting the difficulty of detecting vacancy in environments where utility data are not readily available. This study prioritizes a schema‐agnostic, reproducible architecture and governance framework over model complexity to handle the realities of data scarcity and interoperability in urban planning.

Transactions in GISVol. 30(7)
University College Dublin (IE)
European Commission, NextGenerationEU, Research Ireland
Sustainable cities and communities, Reduced inequalities, Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Openalex Percentile: Top 6%
Urbanization and City Planning
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Building Vacancy Detection With GeoAI Using Proxy Data in a Constrained and Mixed Access Environment — Katsiaryna Bahamazava, Junli Liang, et al. · Transactions in GIS (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS