Population growth shifts ward boundaries

Diana Sahagun

Monday, Feb. 18, 2002 | 10:39 a.m.

Las Vegas officials, who went through redistricting barely two years ago when two council seats were added, were expecting a routine shift in boundaries this year.

But new census figures reveal surprising population numbers that could shove several thousand people into new council wards.

The biggest changes will be felt in the wards including downtown, East Las Vegas and the northwest -- represented by Councilmen Gary Reese and Michael Mack, who could each lose 4,000 people because growth in their wards has so outpaced the others.

A frustrated Reese, whose ward in the past six years has gone through several changes that once had him representing west and central Las Vegas, said just as residents get used to their public officials, they are thrust into new wards.

"When you get in certain areas, there are a lot of people you bond with, have friendships with, and they know they can call you and know you're going to get things done for them," Reese said. "Any way they slice it, it's going to hurt me."

In 2001 Reese's ward increased by more than 10,000 people from the previous year, bringing its population to 88,756. Mack's ward added almost 5,000 people since 2000, bringing it to 88,539.

Lawrence Weekly's Ward 5 also grew dramatically, by almost 7,000 residents, but the smallest ward in 2000, it did not grow past the new target of 84,351 constituents per ward.

The city's charter requires redistricting to keep the ward populations within 5 percent of each other. Deputy City Manager Doug Selby said city planners had expected to see population spread across all wards, resulting in a minor shift of boundaries that could be done by city staffers.

The rapid growth in Reese's Ward 3 and Mack's Ward 6, however, makes things more complicated. The City Council on Wednesday is scheduled to discuss hiring retired Wisconsin judge Frederick Kessler, who redrew the districts in 1999, for $28,000 to adjust the boundaries. If Kessler is hired, the city expects to see new maps in 60 to 90 days, Selby said.

"Fred Kessler has a lot of credibility and independence in this process," Selby said.

Redistricting has always been a political topic, especially when it involves wards with a high number of minorities. Kessler said Thursday that one of his challenges will be -- while taking population out of Reese's ward -- to keep the voice of the majority of Hispanics and blacks living there.

"There's a good likelihood that we'll have a Hispanic majority district on the east side for the first time," Kessler said.

Residents living in Wards 3 and 6 will likely be drawn into Wards 1, 4 and 5, where there is some room for growth, Selby said. Councilman Michael McDonald's Ward 1 has a total population of 80,622, while Weekly's Ward 5 has 83,212.

Councilman Larry Brown's Ward 4, which has the lowest population of 79,126, could take some of the excess from Mack, Selby said.

One reason for the disparity between the wards could be an undercount in the 1990 Census, according to a memo from Robert Genzer, the city's director planning and development.

As a result, a number of Hispanic and other minority households missed in 1990 were counted in 2000. Much of the growth in Ward 3 also can be attributed to the significant growth in the Hispanic population and the average number of people living in a household.

Kessler said Thursday he will hold community meetings to give residents a chance to express their concerns before the map is created so that the boundaries reflect community concerns.

"You always have people who are going to be concerned that they want to be in certain neighborhoods and those changes are pretty wrenching at times," Kessler said. "But I don't think anyone can accuse me of having an interest in the outcome by making a recommendation one way or another."