CHARLESTON, W.Va. — City Council, just like the state Legislature, is having to redraw boundaries following the recent Census.
State code requires the city’s 20 wards to remain identical to census blocks and city attorney Kevin Baker said that requires adjusting those boundaries to insure each ward represents an equal number of people.
“Just like the Legislature we want to make sure we get as close to equal population in our 20 wards as we possibly can,” Baker said on 580-Live on 580-WCHS Monday.
Courts allow for a five percent buffer in population numbers. For 20 wards in a city with a population fo 48,000, the wiggle room is about 120 people. Baker and Mayor Amy Goodwin agreed, that’s not easy to do.
“We have worked with a consultant and internally to crate two different map options that keep our current 11 wards on the north side of the river and 9 wards on the south side of the river. I look at that as really four potential options. We’re also going to work on a 5th option,” he said.
The 5th option is one everybody would like to avoid and that’s causing ward boundaries to cross the river. He said although nobody likes the idea, it may have to be done.
Baker will introduce the options to city council Monday night and the bill will be read a first time. The Streets and Traffic Committee will review the options within the bill. It’s hoped they’ll bring an adjusted bill with some proposed final options to the full council in a week for a vote.