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Home My WebLink About2021-09-23; Independent Redistricting Commission; ; Public Hearing Regarding the Composition and Boundaries of the City’s DistrictsCA Review CKM Meeting Date: Sept. 23, 2021 To: Independent Redistricting Commission Staff Contact: Faviola Medina, City Clerk Services Manager faviola.medina@carlsbadca.gov, 760-434-5989 Subject: Public Hearing Regarding the Composition and Boundaries of the City’s Districts Recommended Action That the Independent Redistricting Commission hold a public hearing and receive public comment regarding the composition and boundaries of the city’s districts. Discussion Pursuant to California Elections Code Section 21627.1, before adopting a final map in the redistricting process, the commission must hold at least four public hearings at which the public is invited to provide input regarding the composition of one or more districts. At least one public hearing must be held before draft maps are drawn. This public hearing fulfills this requirement. The intention of this public hearing is to identify the neighborhoods, communities of interest, and other local factors that should be considered or used as building blocks when the drawing of draft maps begins. While all public input concerning the composition of the city's districts should be considered, all maps must meet the following federal requirements: 1.Population equality across districts. 2.Race cannot be the predominant factor or criteria when drawing districts. 3.Compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, which, among other things, prohibits districts that dilute minority voting rights, and encourages a majority-minority district, if the minority group is sufficiently large, and such a district can be drawn without race being the predominant factor. Additionally, the maps must also meet the following state requirements: •Maps must be drawn using the following criteria in prioritized order: o District boundaries must be geographically contiguous o Districts boundaries must minimize the division of neighborhoods and communities of interest o Districts boundaries must be easily identifiable and understandable by residents o District boundaries must be geographically compact •Maps must not favor or discriminate against a political party Sept. 23, 2021 Item #1 Page 1 of 3 • Maps must be accompanied by information on the total population, citizen voting age population, and racial and ethnic characteristics of the citizen voting age population. • Maps prepared by the city or city contractors may not be released earlier than three weeks after the state redistricting database is publicly available. Fiscal Analysis This action has no fiscal impact. Next Steps Additional public hearings concerning the proposed city district boundaries will be held on Nov. 13, 2021; Jan. 13, 2022; and Feb. 17, 2022. At the conclusion of the final public hearing on Feb. 17, 2022, the Independent Redistricting Commission may adopt a resolution approving the final map. Environmental Evaluation In keeping with California Public Resources Code Section 21065, this action does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act in that it has no potential to cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. Therefore, it does not require environmental review. Public Notification and Outreach This item was noticed in keeping with the Ralph M. Brown Act and California Elections Code Section 21628(c) and it was available for public viewing and review at least 5 days before the scheduled public hearing date. Prior to this public hearing, the city conducted outreach in both English and Spanish to encourage public participation in both the redistricting process in general, and this public hearing in particular. A press release was issued and posted on the city's website on Sept. 16, 2021. In addition, notice of this public hearing was published in English in the Sept. 17, 2021, edition of the San Diego Union-Tribune and in Spanish in the Sept. 17, 2021, edition of El Latino Newspaper. Exhibits 1. Current map of City Council districts Sept. 23, 2021 Item #1 Page 2 of 3 Faraday Av eLa C osta Ave Olivenhain RdLa Costa Ave Ranc ho Sa nta Fe Rd R a n cho Santa Fe RdEl Camino RealMelrose D r Palom a r Airport Rd AviaraPkwy Cannon R dCar l sbad B lv dColle g e Bl v d C o ll e ge Bl v d T a m arack AveT a m a ra ck Av e Marr o n R d Car l sba d Bl v dEl Camino Real P o in settia L n C arlsb adVillage Dr A lg a R d Leucadia Blvd Po in se t t i a L n C hes tn ut Ave 5 78 Encinitas Oceanside Vista MarcosSan City Council District Map District 1 Election 2022 District 2 Election 2024 District 3 Election 2022 Legend District 4 Election 2024 Not to Scale To see details go to the website www.carlsbadca.gov Exhibit 1 Sept. 23, 2021 Item #1 Page 3 of 3 City of Carlsbad Redistricting: Public Hearing #1 Prepared for the Carlsbad Independent Redistricting CommissionSeptember 23, 2021 2 Equal Population Federal Voting Rights Act No Racial Gerrymandering Minimize voters shifted to different election years Respect voters’ choices / continuity in office Future population growth Preserving the core of existing districts 1. Federal Laws 2. California Criteria for Cities 1. Geographically contiguous 2. Undivided neighborhoods and “communities of interest” (Socio-economic geographic areas that should be kept together) 3. Easily identifiable boundaries 4. Compact (Do not bypass one group of people to get to a more distant group of people) Prohibited: “Shall not favor or discriminate against a political party.” 3. Other Traditional Redistricting Principles Redistricting Rules and Goals 3 Carlsbad’s Current Districts 4 Carlsbad District Population Estimates Note: Population numbers are estimates. We are waiting to analyze final census data adjusted by California for the actual population count to be used for redistricting. District 1 2 3 4 2020 2020 Est. Total Pop 25,366 28,510 30,148 29,318 Deviation from ideal -2,970 175 1,812 982 % Deviation -10.48% 0.62% 6.40% 3.47% Tot Est Pop Ideal Pop. Per District 113,341 28,335 Range Deviation from Ideal 16.88% Anything over 10% deviation from the ideal population is considered unbalanced 5 Carlsbad Demographic Snapshot % Hispanic CVAP % Asian/Pac.Isl. CVAP 1 2 3 4 Total % Hisp 16% 13% 10% 8% 11% % NH White 76% 74% 77% 84% 78% % NH Black 2% 3% 1% 1% 2% % Asian/Pac.Isl.5% 9% 11% 7% 8% Total 17,845 20,859 20,781 21,547 81,032 Citizen Voting Age Pop Defining Neighborhoods 1st Question: What is your neighborhood? 2nd Question: What are its geographic boundaries? Examples of physical features defining a neighborhood boundary: ▪Natural neighborhood dividing lines, such as highway or major roads, rivers, canals and/or hills ▪Areas around parks or schools ▪Other neighborhood landmarks In the absence of public testimony, planning records and other similar documents may provide definition. 6 “Community of Interest” Defined 7 ▪Elections Code Section 21621(c)(2): ▪To the extent practicable, the geographic integrity of any local neighborhood or local community of interest shall be respected in a manner that minimizes its division. ▪A “community of interest” is a population that shares common social or economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation. ▪Cities should now formally identify “Section 21621(c)(2) Communities of Interest” early in the process. ▪Communities of interest do not include relationships with political parties, incumbents, or political candidates Communities of Interest in Carlsbad 1st Question: What defines your community? ▪Geographic Area, plus ▪Shared issue or characteristic ▪Shared social or economic interest ▪Impacted by county policies ▪Tell us “your community’s story” 2nd Question:Would this community benefit from being “included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation”? ▪Or would it benefit more from having multiple representatives? Definitions of Communities of Interest may not include relationships with political parties, incumbents, or political candidates. 8 9 Public Mapping Tools Tools for drawing your own maps are available on the City of Carlsbad Redistricting Page: Carlsbadca.gov/City-Hall/City-Council/Redistricting Public Hearing and Workshop Schedule 10 ▪Saturday, October 23, 2021 –Public Workshops ▪Saturday, November 13, 2021 –Public Hearing #2 ▪Thursday, January 13, 2022 -Public Hearing #3 ▪Thursday, February 17, 2022 –Public Hearing #4 Please be advised this schedule is subject to change. Next Steps 11 ▪Fill out a Communities of Interest Survey Redistricting Survey (surveymonkey.com) ▪Public Workshops –Sat., October 23, 2021 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. ▪Become familiar with Paper Mapping Kits and Online Tools ▪Regular Meeting –Thurs., October 28, 2021 at 4 p.m. ▪Access the City of Carlsbad’s Redistricting Page for more information: Carlsbadca.gov/City-Hall/City-Council/Redistricting Discussion Topics 12 Questions about the process or mapping tools: What is your neighborhood and what are its boundaries? What other notable areas are in the City, and what are their boundaries? What are the key Communities of Interest in Carlsbad? ▪Geographic Area, plus ▪Shared issue or characteristic ▪Shared social or economic interest ▪Impacted by county policies ▪Other unifying characteristics