AgdaPkt 2018-11-19 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

7.A. - Page 2 of 7 a court doing so. Additionally, adopting the resolution by March 31 enables the City to cap at $30,000 its exposure of having to reimburse Mr. Shenkman his attorney fees. The first step in the transition process is to hold two public hearings to invite public input regarding the composition of the City's voting districts before any draft maps are drawn. The first of these two public hearings was held on October 22, 2018. At that meeting, there was general City Council consensus to draw district election maps with seven city council member districts, with a City Council appointed rotating Mayorship. After completion of tonight's public hearing, the City Council must hold at least two additional public hearings during a 45 -day period on the map(s) of the districts themselves. The maps must be publicly available for at least seven days before the public hearing, and if a change is made to the map after the first public hearing, the revised map must be available at least seven days before the districts are adopted by ordinance. ANALYSIS The purpose of the first two public hearings is to inform the public about the districting process and to hear from the community on what factors should be taken into consideration while creating district boundaries. The public is requested to provide input regarding communities of interest and other local factors that should be considered while drafting district maps. A community of interest is a neighborhood or group that would benefit from being in the same district because of shared interests, views, or characteristics. Possible community features include, but are not limited to: A. School attendance areas; B. Natural dividing lines such as major roads, hills, or highways; C. Neighborhood Association boundaries; D. Areas around parks and other neighborhood landmarks; E. Common issues, neighborhood activities, or legislative/election concerns; and F. Shared demographic characteristics, such as: i. Similar levels of income, education, or linguistic isolation; ii. Languages spoken at home; and iii. Single-family and multi -family housing unit areas. In creating the district boundaries, the City must ensure compliance with the following state and federally mandated criteria: Legal Requirements: • Each council district shall contain a nearly equal population as required by law; and • Each council district shall be drawn in a manner that complies with the Federal Voting Rights Act; and • No council district shall be drawn with race as the predominant factor in violation of the principles established by the United States Supreme Court in Shaw v. Reno, 509 U.S. 630 (1993), and its progeny. In addition to the legal criteria, other factors may be considered. Examples of such factors are found in Elections Code section 21601 and in judicial opinions. Some examples are: • Council districts may take into consideration communities of interest; City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcitV.org 126