Friday, Oct. 1, 2004 | 8:58 a.m.
The consultant hired by Las Vegas to create a redistricting plan has prepared several alternate maps after vocal criticism of the initial proposal, which would have severed a neighborhood from its traditional Ward 1 location.
"Certainly there are options on the table now that weren't there before," Councilman Larry Brown said.
Those plans may wait until 2006, an option that came to the fore Monday when the Las Vegas City Council had a public hearing on the first redistricting proposal.
"That's a viable option," Brown said. "I went into the public hearing Monday and when I left that meeting I thought that was the strongest choice."
But, he said, his mind isn't made up.
"I'll wait to hear the next round of testimony," Brown said.
Redistricting is allowed, but not required, whenever the population among wards varies by more than 5 percent. It is required following every U.S. Census if the population discrepancy between wards is more than 5 percent. It cannot take place during election years, which in the city of Las Vegas are odd years.
The difficulty with redistricting this year is that three wards -- 1, 3, and 5 -- are relatively stable in population at about 80,000 each. The faster-growing wards -- 2, 4, and 6 -- have populations ranging from 96,000 in Ward 4 to 116,000 in Ward 6.
Because those wards last had regular elections in 2001, the City Council does not want to move residents east in the odd-numbered wards where they would have to wait until 2007 to vote -- a six-year gap.
There is one exception, Ward 2, which had a special election this year. That allows those residents to be moved into Ward 1, which has elections in 2007, without interrupting their ability to vote every four years. It also forced the mapmaker -- retired Wisconsin Judge Frederick Kessler -- to move some Ward 1 residents to Ward 5.
That caused an outcry among the residents who live between U.S. 95 and Charleston Boulevard and between Rancho Drive and Valley View Boulevard.
Marilyn Moran, who lives in the area proposed to be moved, said she wants to see the other proposals, but has doubts about moving forward too quickly. She noted Kessler's remarks during the council meeting, in which he said waiting until 2006 would give him the opportunity to draw cleaner ward lines.
"We're all convinced the city should follow its expert," Moran said. "He put on the record he felt from the beginning we should have waited until 2006 to do it. ... I felt this would clearly be the answer. Everyone (in even-numbered wards) would vote in spring, and it would give them a year to prepare a new map and do it right."
Ward 2 Councilman Steve Wolfson said he hasn't made up his mind on the issue, but he's interested in hearing more about the impact of holding off on redistricting until 2006.
"Right now what we've got is such a variance between the wards," Wolfson said. "On its face, it seems like ... why don't we do something now?"
But, Wolfson said, "we heard pretty directly that even though Councilman (Michael) Mack has a more populated ward, he's servicing his ward. So even though there might be a disparity, none of the persons who reside in the ward that has the populace are going without services. So why do we need to do it just for the fact of doing it?"
Councilwoman Janet Moncrief said she wouldn't oppose waiting until 2006, but she's also prepared to vote in favor of a redistricting plan immediately.
Mack, who first brought up the issue of redistricting in fall 2003, said two of the four new options won't work because they would force some residents who last voted in 2001 to wait until 2007 to vote.
He said postponing the redistricting until 2006 "is a viable option, but I want to make sure, I want to hear what my colleagues have to say. I'm looking forward to a lively debate on the 20th."
The City Council will discuss the proposals during its regular Oct. 20 meeting.
In the meantime, Mack said, there may be some "out-of-the-box" ideas that could help him deal with the growth issues in his ward, which has by far the most planning items before the City Council on a regular basis.
"I talked to the city manager about an internship program within my office, or maybe through planning," he said. "It really is the growth issues we're faced with.
"Being a new area, you have a lot of new residents. They're calling on everything -- where their kids should go to school, or who to call when the power goes out -- so we get it all. My staff, though, does a great job."
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