Muristek
And then there were four.
The Santa Barbara Independent Redistricting Commission has narrowed proposed electoral maps to just four “tentative finalists” at the latest meeting.
Map 101RE appeared to be the frontrunner during Monday’s redistricting meeting with multiple Santa Barbara City Council members speaking in favor of it.
This plan has a total population deviation of 6.3%. District 1 would have a 50% Latino citizen voting-age population while District 3 would only have a 42% Latino CVAP.
Population deviation refers to the difference in population sizes among districts. The current district map for Santa Barbara has a population deviation of nearly 20%, much higher than the 10% threshold deemed to be constitutional, according to demographer Daniel Phillips.
Under the 101RE plan, the Santa Barbara Airport would remain in District 5, and the Eucalyptus Hill neighborhood would remain in-tact within District 4, a concern raised earlier in the redistricting process.
District 1 would maintain a presence on State Street and East Beach, and District 2 would be confined to the Mesa area while also including Santa Barbara City College, Stearns Wharf and the Harbor.
District 3 stretches up to La Cumbre Junior High School down to West Beach and includes part of the downtown area.
District 4 includes a small coastal presence and the whole Upper East neighborhood, and District 5 includes Arroyo Burro Beach (aka Hendry’s Beach). District 6 covers most of the downtown area as well as the Oak Park and part of Laguna neighborhoods.
Councilmember Kristen Sneddon spoke in favor of the 105RE map as did Councilmember Alejandra Gutierrez.
Councilmember Alejandra Gutierrez said East Beach is more in-line with the rest of District 1, noting residents in her district tend to utilize East Beach. And she said she’s in concurrence with “the agreement when districts were divided that every district should have a say on the downtown area.”
Councilmember Oscar Gutierrez said the 101RE plan “best encompasses” the inclusion of the Westside neighborhood into District 3 but expressed concerns about the Latino CVAP for that district which he represents.
Councilmember Gutierrez also requested the Harding School be drawn back into his district with whatever map the commission picks, noting it’s always been in District 3 and he has been heavily involved with the school.
Dr. Phillips said it would be easier to draw it back into District 3 under the 101RE map because no houses were involved. However, under DEC Plan EUB, that change could negatively impact that map’s Latino CVAP for District 3, Dr. Phillips warned.
The DEC Plan EUB map also garnered a lot of interest at the latest redistricting meeting. This map has a total population deviation of 9.3% with a Latino CVAP of 50% for District 1 and 46% in District 3.
This plan expands District 2 to include part of lower State Street. But it ends District 3 at West Mission Street while pushing it over across the freeway into the west downtown neighborhood. District 6 would include Oak Park and extend across the freeway into more of the Modoc Road area.
District 1 would include the waterfront and most of East Beach as well.
The other two proposals still under consideration by the commission are 104E and DEC Plan EU.
Plan 104E has a total population deviation of 8.2%. District 1 has a Latino CVAP of 51% and 45% for District 3.
Under this plan, District 1 would lack a presence on State Street and not include East Beach. District 3 would curve around to include part of the downtown area and stretch up to La Cumbre Junior High School.
District 4 would maintain a small coastal presence, and District 5 would stretch down to Hendry’s Beach. District 6 would include most of the downtown area, but would also feature parts of the Laguna and Oak Park neighborhoods.
District 2 would include most of the waterfront areas, from West Mesa to East Beach.
DEC Plan EU would eliminate District 1’s East Beach and State Street areas and push District 3 down to end at West Mission Street. District 2 would stretch from West Mesa to the West Beach area.
East Beach would be covered by District 4, and District 5 would include Hendry’s Beach. District 6 would include most of downtown Santa Barbara, all of Oak Park and much of the Westside, going past the Modoc Road area.
This plan has a population deviation of 9.3%. The District 1 Latino CVAP is 51%, and the District 3 Latino CVAP is 46%.
“We still have a great deal to digest,” Judge Melinda Johnson, the commission chair, said Monday evening.
The next meeting is scheduled for March 30 at 2 p.m. The meeting will be held at the Santa Barbara City Council chambers at 735 Anacapa St.
Members of the public are encouraged to submit written comments ahead of the March 30 meeting to be considered by the commission. The deadline for those written comments will be March 23, Judge Johnson said.
The final maps under consideration in Santa Barbara can be found here: santabarbaraca.gov/gov/brdcomm/dm/irc/agendas.asp.
Meanwhile, in Santa Maria, the city council picked a new map that made very minor changes to its four districts last week. The council selected Minimal Change Plan B, with a total population deviation of 3.3%, in a 3-2 vote on March 15.
The map extends District 1 south just a bit as well as adds a little nook in the northeast corner. District 2 also extends a bit east, under this plan, and includes a cluster of a few blocks in the southeast area. email: kschallhorn@newspress.com
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