Flyover app swoops into Modesto

MODESTO — After too many years of finding itself on lists cities loathe, such as the worst place to find a job or the best place to have a car stolen, Modesto can feel proud.

It has landed on the list of cities Apple recently included in its Flyover mode on the map app for iPhones, iPads and iPods.

Flyover — which is available only on devices with the iOS 6 mobile operating system — gives Apple users a 3-D view of a city. It's as though users are flying over their cities and able to zoom in for an in-depth look at a building, park or street.

When Apple introduced Flyover last year, it was available for a limited number of big cities, such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. Since then, the tech giant has been adding more communities.

The technology website The Loop reported this week that Apple added 15 cities in recent months, including Modesto, which finds itself alongside such communities as Baltimore; Minneapolis; Tulsa, Okla.; and Green Bay, Wis.

That's pretty good company.

City officials say Flyover gives them another high-tech option to promote Modesto.

The city submitted a digital proposal when it applied to be part of this year's Amgen Tour of California, the nation's biggest bicycle race. The application included a 3-D bicyclist's-eye view as the cyclist pedaled through Modesto and its environs.

"It could be another tool for economic development," Bryan Sastokas, the city's chief information officer, said about Flyover.

He said Flyover could help Modesto improve how it interacts with residents. For example: Someone wanting to rent a park pavilion could check out the options by using Flyover and then access the city website with an iPhone to rent the facility.

Bee staff writer Kevin Valine can be reached at kvaline@modbee.com or (209) 578-2316.