Venue Management

Last updated: January 26, 2026

Comprehensive venue taxonomy with 9 meta fields and admin interface for event locations.

Overview

Data Machine Events provides a complete venue management system through WordPress custom taxonomy with extensive metadata fields. Venues can be created manually or automatically during event imports.

Features

Venue Taxonomy

  • WordPress Native: Uses standard WordPress taxonomy system
  • Hierarchical Support: Organize venues by location or type
  • Admin Interface: Complete CRUD operations in WordPress admin
  • REST API Integration: Venue data available via endpoints

Meta Fields

Venues include 10 comprehensive metadata fields:

  • address: Street address for venue location
  • city: Venue city or locality
  • state: State or province
  • zip: Postal code or ZIP code
  • country: Country name or code
  • phone: Venue phone number
  • website: Venue website URL
  • capacity: Maximum venue capacity
  • coordinates: GPS coordinates (latitude, longitude)
  • venueTimezone: IANA timezone identifier (e.g., "America/New_York") (@since v0.8.14)

Timezone Detection

Venues support automatic timezone detection through multiple mechanisms:

  • Source Data: Import handlers (Ticketmaster, Eventbrite, DiceFm, ICS calendars, web scrapers) extract and store timezone data when available from the source.
  • GeoNames Fallback: When a venue is created or updated with valid coordinates but no timezone, the GeoNamesService automatically fetches the correct IANA timezone identifier. Requires geonames_username configured in Event Settings.
  • AI Chat Tools: Use venue_health_check to identify venues missing timezone data, update_venue to fix them, and get_venue_events to retrieve upcoming events for a specific venue. The update triggers automatic timezone derivation via GeoNames when coordinates are available.
  • Calendar Integration: Calendar_Query and DateTimeParser respect venue-specific timezones for accurate date grouping and display.

Admin Interface

  • Venue Management: Full admin interface for venue operations
  • Bulk Operations: Create, edit, and delete venues
  • Search Functionality: Find venues by name or location
  • Meta Field Forms: User-friendly forms for all metadata

Integration Features

Geocoding Integration

  • Automatic Coordinate Lookup: Uses OpenStreetMap Nominatim API for venue coordinates
  • Address-Based Geocoding: Triggers when venue address fields are populated
  • Coordinate Storage: Stores latitude/longitude in venue meta for map display
  • Proper User Agent: Uses appropriate user agent for API requests

Event Assignment

  • Automatic Assignment: Venues automatically linked to events
  • Duplicate Detection: Prevents duplicate venue creation
  • Find-or-Create: Intelligent venue matching during imports
  • Venue Service: Centralized venue operations API

Map Integration

  • 5 Free Tile Layers: No API keys required
  • Leaflet.js Integration: Interactive venue maps
  • Custom Markers: Consistent venue location indicators
  • Responsive Design: Mobile-friendly map display

Usage

Manual Venue Creation

  1. Navigate: Events → Venues in WordPress admin
  2. Add New Venue: Fill in venue name and description
  3. Complete Meta Fields: Add address, contact, and capacity information
  4. Save: Venue created and available for event assignment

Automatic Venue Creation

  • Import Handlers: Ticketmaster, Dice FM, Google Calendar create venues
  • AI-Powered: Universal Web Scraper extracts venue information
  • Data Normalization: Consistent venue data across sources
  • Duplicate Prevention: EventIdentifierGenerator prevents duplicate venues

Venue Assignment to Events

  • Event Details Block: Select venue from dropdown or create new
  • Import Processing: Venues automatically assigned during event import
  • Manual Selection: Choose existing venues for manual events

Map Display Types

Available Tile Layers

  1. OpenStreetMap Standard: Default open-source mapping
  2. CartoDB Positron: Clean, minimal design
  3. CartoDB Voyager: Detailed street-level mapping
  4. CartoDB Dark Matter: Dark theme mapping
  5. Humanitarian OpenStreetMap: Emergency response mapping

Configuration

  • Settings Page: Events → Settings → Map Display Type
  • Global Setting: Site-wide map tile selection
  • Per-Event Basis: Maps respect user display preferences

REST API Endpoints

Venue Operations

  • GET /venues/{id}: Retrieve venue data and metadata
  • POST /venues: Create new venue with metadata
  • PUT /venues/{id}: Update existing venue
  • DELETE /venues/{id}: Delete venue

Duplicate Checking

  • GET /venues/check-duplicate: Check for existing venues
  • Parameters: venue name and address for matching
  • Response: Boolean duplicate status and existing venue ID

Developer Integration

Venue Data Access

// Get complete venue data
$venue_data = Venue_Taxonomy::get_venue_data($term_id);

// Get formatted address
$address = Venue_Taxonomy::get_formatted_address($term_id);

// Find or create venue (Venue_Taxonomy method)
$venue_result = Venue_Taxonomy::find_or_create_venue($venue_name, $venue_metadata);

// Normalize venue data (VenueService method)
$normalized_data = VenueService::normalize_venue_data($raw_data);

// Get or create venue with normalized data (VenueService method)
$venue_id = VenueService::get_or_create_venue($normalized_data);

Custom Meta Fields

// Add custom venue meta field
add_action('datamachine_events_venue_meta_fields', function($fields) {
    $fields['custom_field'] = [
        'label' => 'Custom Field',
        'type' => 'text',
        'description' => 'Custom venue metadata'
    ];
    return $fields;
});

Map Customization

// Custom map tile layer
add_filter('datamachine_events_map_tile_layers', function($layers) {
    $layers['custom_layer'] = [
        'name' => 'Custom Tiles',
        'url' => 'https://example.com/tiles/{z}/{x}/{y}.png',
        'attribution' => '© Custom Maps'
    ];
    return $layers;
});

Performance Features

Efficient Queries

  • Indexed Fields: Optimized database queries
  • Caching: Venue data caching for performance
  • Bulk Operations: Efficient venue management
  • REST Optimization: Fast API response times

SEO Benefits

  • Structured Data: Venue information in event schema
  • Local SEO: Enhanced local search visibility
  • Address Markup: Proper address formatting
  • Contact Information: Complete venue contact details

The venue management system provides comprehensive location data management with automatic creation during imports and flexible manual administration.

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