• GROWTH
  • DETAILS
  • REPORT
  • HUMAN

How to track local construction trends with your AI

Connect Shovels to your agent to turn permit data into regional growth maps. Your AI handles the heavy lifting of scanning records and calculating volume shifts.

Ask AI about this page

Short answer

How can I use my AI to find where new construction is happening?

Your agent uses Shovels to pull permit counts and specific building records for any region you specify. It identifies spikes in activity to highlight emerging high-growth areas. You get a clear picture of where building volume is increasing.

The outcomes.

Where your data lands.

The AI processes permit information into these specific outcomes.

GROWTH

Identify hot zones

The AI compares permit volumes across different zip codes or counties. You get a list of areas where building activity is accelerating.

DETAILS

Pinpoint specific projects

Your agent digs into individual permit records to find project types and values. This helps you see exactly what kind of construction is driving the trend.

REPORT

Summarize regional shifts

The AI aggregates data into concise summaries of permit trends. You can quickly see if a region is cooling off or heating up.

HUMAN

Verify high-value leads

The AI flags interesting permit clusters for you. You decide which specific developers or sites are worth a manual follow-up.

The workflow

What your AI does when the data arrives.

The AI moves from broad regional scans to specific project deep dives.

  1. Scan regional activity

    Your agent pulls high-level permit counts for a specific area to establish a baseline.

    get_permit_stats

  2. Isolate growth areas

    The AI compares recent stats against historical data to find where volume is spiking.

    get_permit_stats

  3. Inspect specific permits

    Once a trend is found, the agent looks up the actual permit records to see project details.

    search_permits

  4. Flag high-value targets

    The AI filters the results to find the most significant building projects in those zones.

    search_permits

Try it

Copy these to start.

Use these prompts to kick off your analysis.

Starting points

These are opening lines. Swap out the cities or permit types for your specific needs.

Shovels Connector

You're all set. Choose your MCP client and follow the setup instructions.

Connector linkhttps://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_RSG9zy7OuDDwy2PArhzcYxbqgpEgvLANjYpKraK6/mcp

Claude Desktop

Follow the steps below to connect in seconds.

  1. 1In Claude Desktop, open Settings → Connectors.
  2. 2Click “Add custom connector” and paste the connector link above as the remote MCP server URL.
  3. 3Click Add and start a new chat — Shovels capabilities are ready to use.
Configuration · claude_desktop_config.jsonCopy
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "shovels-mcp": {
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_RSG9zy7OuDDwy2PArhzcYxbqgpEgvLANjYpKraK6/mcp"
    }
  }
}
Copy into chat04

  • Get the permit stats for Austin, Texas to see recent building volume.

  • Search permits in Miami for all new residential construction projects.

  • Compare permit stats between Maricopa County and Pima County to find the faster growing area.

  • Find all active commercial building permits in downtown Denver.

  • Claude
  • ChatGPT
  • Cursor
  • VS Code
  • Windsurf
  • Claude Code
  • JetBrains
  • Cline

Start here

Connect Shovels once, then ask.

One click connects this MCP to your agent. Your credentials stay encrypted and the setup is handled on our end.

Connect Shovels to your AI

FAQ

How this task behaves.

  • 01

    Can the AI file a permit for me?

    No. The AI can only read and analyze existing permit data.

  • 02

    Can the AI change permit status in the local database?

    No. The tools are read-only for searching and retrieving statistics.

  • 03

    Does the AI provide real-time updates?

    The AI provides data based on the most recent permit records available through the tools.

  • 04

    Can I use this to find specific contractor names?

    Yes, if that information is included in the permit records the agent searches.

  • 05

    Will the AI automatically email me when a new permit is filed?

    No. You must ask the AI to check for new permits or specific trends.

  • More questions about Shovels? See everything the Shovels Connector can do

Connect Shovels to Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT & more