An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that gives AI assistants access to the Calgary Open Data portal. Search datasets, inspect schemas, and query any dataset using SoQL — all through a unified MCP interface.
Disclaimer: This project is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the City of Calgary. It queries publicly available data through the Socrata Open Data API.
Connect any MCP-compatible client to the hosted endpoint:
https://calgary-open-data.baobabtech.app/mcp
npx calgary-open-data-mcpThis starts a local stdio MCP server — no cloning or configuration needed.
The server exposes three tools:
Search the Calgary Open Data catalog by keyword, category, or tag.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
query |
string | no | Keyword search term |
categories |
string | no | Filter by category name |
tags |
string | no | Filter by tag |
limit |
number | no | Results per page (1-100, default 10) |
offset |
number | no | Pagination offset |
Get the full schema and metadata for a specific dataset.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
datasetId |
string | yes | Socrata four-by-four ID (e.g. 35ra-9556) |
Returns column names, field names, data types, descriptions, tags, license, and last updated timestamp.
Query any dataset using SoQL (Socrata Query Language).
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
datasetId |
string | yes | Socrata four-by-four ID |
select |
string | no | Columns to return ($select). E.g. name, address, count(*) |
where |
string | no | Filter condition ($where). E.g. year > 2020 |
order |
string | no | Sort order ($order). E.g. date DESC |
group |
string | no | Group by columns ($group). E.g. ward |
having |
string | no | Post-aggregation filter ($having). E.g. count(*) > 10 |
q |
string | no | Full-text search across all text columns |
limit |
number | no | Max rows to return (1-50000, default 100) |
offset |
number | no | Pagination offset |
All examples below use the hosted endpoint. Replace the URL with http://localhost:3000/mcp for local development.
Settings > Connectors > Add custom connector, enter:
https://calgary-open-data.baobabtech.app/mcp
claude mcp add --transport http calgary-open-data https://calgary-open-data.baobabtech.app/mcpIn .cursor/mcp.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"calgary-open-data": {
"url": "https://calgary-open-data.baobabtech.app/mcp"
}
}
}Settings > Apps & Connectors > Advanced settings, enable Developer mode, click Create, enter:
https://calgary-open-data.baobabtech.app/mcp
{
"mcpServers": {
"calgary-open-data": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "calgary-open-data-mcp"]
}
}
}The root of this repo is a Next.js app ready to deploy on Vercel.
git clone https://github.com/baobab-tech/calgary-open-data-mcp.git
cd calgary-open-data-mcp
pnpm installDeploy via the Vercel CLI or connect the repo in the Vercel dashboard.
Optional: Set a SOCRATA_APP_TOKEN environment variable in your Vercel project settings for higher Socrata API rate limits. Register for a free app token at data.calgary.ca.
A self-contained Cloudflare Worker lives in the cloudflare/ directory.
cd cloudflare
pnpm install
pnpm run login # authenticate with Cloudflare (first time only)
pnpm run dev # local development
pnpm run cf:deploy # deploy to CloudflareOptional: Set a SOCRATA_APP_TOKEN secret:
npx wrangler secret put SOCRATA_APP_TOKENgit clone https://github.com/baobab-tech/calgary-open-data-mcp.git
cd calgary-open-data-mcp
pnpm installVercel (Next.js) dev server:
pnpm devMCP endpoint available at http://localhost:3000/mcp.
Cloudflare Worker dev server:
cd cloudflare
pnpm install
pnpm run devCLI (stdio):
pnpm build:cli
node dist/cli.js# Root project (Vercel + CLI)
pnpm tsc --noEmit
# Cloudflare Worker
cd cloudflare && pnpm tsc --noEmitpnpm build:cliThis produces dist/cli.js — the file referenced by the bin field in package.json.
src/
lib/
socrata.ts Socrata API client (Discovery, Metadata, SODA)
tools.ts Shared MCP tool definitions
cli.ts npx entry point (stdio transport)
app/
[transport]/route.ts Vercel HTTP endpoint (Streamable HTTP)
page.tsx Landing page
layout.tsx
cloudflare/
src/index.ts Cloudflare Worker (self-contained)
wrangler.toml
package.json
The Vercel deployment and the npx CLI share tool definitions via src/lib/tools.ts. The Cloudflare Worker is self-contained since CF Workers use a different module runtime.
This server wraps three layers of the Socrata Open Data API that powers data.calgary.ca:
- Discovery API — catalog search across all datasets on the portal
- Metadata API — detailed schema and column information per dataset
- SODA API — the data query layer, using SoQL (a SQL-like query language)
Every dataset on the portal has a unique four-by-four ID (e.g. 35ra-9556). Use search_datasets to find IDs, get_dataset_metadata to understand the schema, then query_dataset to pull the data.
All remote endpoints use Streamable HTTP — the current MCP transport standard. The npx CLI uses stdio transport for local use.
Contributions are welcome! Here's how to get started:
- Fork the repository
- Create a feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/my-feature) - Make your changes
- Run type checking (
pnpm tsc --noEmit) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add my feature') - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/my-feature) - Open a Pull Request
- Additional tools (e.g. dataset export, geospatial queries)
- Support for other Socrata-powered open data portals
- Caching layer for frequently accessed metadata
- Better error messages and input validation
- Tests
Please open an issue first if you're planning a large change so we can discuss the approach.
MIT
- City of Calgary Open Data for making public data accessible
- Socrata / Tyler Data & Insights for the API platform
- Model Context Protocol for the open standard