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HomeMy WebLinkAboutVI (A) Discussion/ Action re: Districting Commission ReportCity of Ocoee 150 NORTH LAKEsHORE DRIVE OCOEE, FLORIDA 34761-2258 (407)656-2322 FAX (407) 656-5725 MEMORANDUM To: The Honorable Mayor and City Commission From: Jean Grafton, City Clerk Date: July 24, 1997 Re: Districting Commission Report Agenda 8-5-97 Item VI A Jean Grafton City Clerk The minutes of the Districting Commission meetings and the map showing the resulting recommendation are submitted for your review and action. There is also a chart showing the population distribution (and registered voter distribution) according to current districts vs. proposed districts. The population figures were provided by Real Estate Research Consultants as you authorized in regular session on June 3, 1997. Supervisor of Elections Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis used those figures to update her census block map and then prepared maps of 5 basic options using criteria established by the Districting Commission: (1) current, (2) major roads, (3) north/south orientation, (4) least change, and (5) Federal/State districts. After considering the maps the Districting Commission chose map number (4) for fine tuning. Those preliminary maps are available for your review in the Districting Commission file in my office. Chairman Holmes, Senior Planner Horne and Mrs. Willis will be present to answer any questions. Action Needed If the proposed map meets with your approval, direction should be given to the City Attorney Rosenthal to prepare an ordinance adopting the new district lines as proposed (or as adjusted by you at this meeting). "PRIDE OF WEST ORANGE" Gf DISTRICTING COMMISSION Appointed December 3, 1996 Member Robert W. Williams 905 Hawaii Drive Ocoee, FL 34761 Bruce D. Holmes, Chairman 469 Little Rock Street Ocoee, FL 34761 Betty Hager 511 Orange Avenue Ocoee, FL 34761 Ruth Grafton 25 Th Street Ocoee, FL 34761 District 1 2 2 3 Martha Lopez -Anderson 4 3200 Old Winter Garden Road Apt 1927 Ocoee, FL 34761 C:\ALL DATA\WORDPERFECT\DISTCOMM.LST.WPD/MJG/7/25/97 Phone Number 656-4409 (Home) 877-8203 (Home) 656-3838 (Home) 656-3345 (Home) 293-9333 (Home) 896-6651 (Office) 894-7245 (Fax) MINU'T'ES OF THE CITY OF OCOEE DISTRICTING COMMISSION ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING HELD APRIL 29, 1997 CALL TO ORDER City Attorney Rosenthal called the organizational meeting of the Ocoee Districting Commission to order at 7:30 in the Commission Chambers. Following the roll call and determination that a quorum was present, the members observed a moment of silence and then joined in the pledge of allegiance. PRESENT: Members Ruth Grafton, Betty Hager, Bruce Holmes, Martha Lopez -Anderson, and Robert Williams. Also present were City Attorney Rosenthal and City Clerk Grafton. ELECTION OF OFFICERS Mr. Rosenthal explained that the first order of business was to elect a chair to officiate at the meetings. Mrs. Hager nominated Mr. Williams, who declined. Then Mr. Williams nominated Mrs. Hager, who declined. At Mr. Holmes' request Mr. Rosenthal explained the basic duties of the chair: to act as presiding officer of the meetings, gavel the meeting to order, call the roll, conduct discussions, and recognize the public. He said further that the chair may take a more active role, if desired. He explained that the material would be provided by staff. Member Hager, seconded by Member Grafton, nominated Member Holmes to serve as chair. Member Williams moved that Member Holmes be elected by acclamation. Motion carried 5-0. Member Grafton, seconded by Member Hager, nominated Member Williams to serve as vice -chair. Motion carried 5-0. NON -AGENDA ITEM Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles addressed the Commission to advise that the election office had provided assistance to the County Districting Commission in 1989 and would be in a position to help with this project electronically if desired, as long as the population numbers staved within census blocks. He introduced Beverly Willis. Senior Mapping Supervisor, who would be the contact person from that office. Mrs. Willis reviewed the possible sources for the necessary information to establish a population data base (census, utilities, housing count, commercial mailing lists, 911 data, aerial photos, delivery of phone books, property appraiser's office, traffic zones, voter registration, Bureau of Economic Business Research [BEBR]), and said that all the defensible information available is at the county level, not municipal. She said there may be a private company that has already compiled the information, but she had not found one vet. She provided a copy of the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council's (ECFRPC) population projections for 1995-2010 and a memo from A. Bryant Applegate, Assistant County Attorney, dated August 15, 1989 to be copied and Districting Commission Organizational Meeting April 29, 1997 distributed to this Commission. Mr. Applegate's memo re: "Final Report on Findings of Fact" describes the process used by Orange County in redistricting at that time. Mrs. Willis advised that she has the 1990 census maps and figures in her computer as well as the GIS mapping data base and can work with a data base of either population figures or voter registration figures. She said that, once the figures are plugged into the census blocks, she could easily assist the Districting Commission in redrawing the district lines with her computer. REPORT ON LEGAL ISSUES - CrrY ATToRNEY PAUL ROSENTHAL City Attorney Rosenthal gave an overview of the background of the districting of the City, noting that the Charter requires that a districting commission be appointed every five years, beginning with 1991 (1996, 2001, etc.) "to review the geographic boundaries of the four single -member districts... in light of the most current, official census data, together with all other data relevant to the redistricting of geographic boundaries." He pointed out that the review following the release of the official census would be more accurate than a report put together using a different source and if this Commission finds that there is not enough data available it could recommend waiting until the year 2000 census is released for the redistricting. Mr. Rosenthal advised that if this Commission wished to go forward, however, and make an effort at this time, it may be necessary to engage a consultant with the technical expertise to provide data, as the City is not staffed for the type of research required for this project. He said that, in anticipation of this need, Senior Planner Horne had conducted a search for an agency to prepare the population figures, and had received a response from Ronald R. Schultz, Ph.D., Regional Research Associates, Inc. (This response had been distributed for Commission review at the beginning of the meeting.) Mr. Rosenthal added that this Commission is charged to "prepare a report to the City Commission containing recommendations, if any, for adjustment of district boundaries," and he pointed out that the "if any" was a specific recognition that the Commission might encounter problems coming up with good population data. Mr. Rosenthal cautioned that the districting should be based on the number of residents, and that, in determining the number of residents, the City's information regarding annexations, certificates of occupancy, building permits, etc. may be used to project an estimate of the population, but that staff had recommended hiring a consultant to pull together the figures. He listed the specific criteria from the Charter for this Commission to follow: a) Each district shall be contact, contiguous territory and as rectangular as possible. To the extent possible, the boundary lines of each district shall follow the center lines of streets. b) The districts shall be based upon the principle of equal and effective representation as required by the United States Constitution. Page 2 of 4 Districting Commission Organizational Meeting April 29, 1997 c) The boundaries of each district shall, to the extent possible, be aligned with the boundaries of the county precincts within the city and with the boundaries of the city. (Here Mr. Rosenthal stressed the need to coordinate with the existing county precinct lines.) d) All reports containing recommendations shall include a map that sets forth the proposed boundaries of each district. Mr. Rosenthal said that the delay in calling this organizational meeting after the Commission appointments in December 1996 was caused by the thought that during its process the Charter Review Commission may recommend doing away with single -member districts and have a special election. However, a review of that schedule indicated there was no likelihood that the Charter Review Commission decision/recommendation/referendum could happen before the August deadline for the Districting Commission's submission of a recommendation. DISCUSSION RE: HIRING OF CONSULTANT Member Williams stated for clarification that if a consultant is hired, this Commission would set the parameters by which the consultant would operate and the consultant would do all of the collection and evaluation of the figures, bringing back to this Commission a recommendation with which to work. Mr. Rosenthal said it would first be necessary to put the hiring of a consultant on the City Commission agenda and, upon hiring, then get the consultant to meet with the Districting Commission for brainstorming. Mrs. Willis pointed out the need for the figures to be provided at the census block level, and said she would be able to provide a map and 1990 census block figures. In response to a question by Mr. Rosenthal, Mrs. Willis said she could provide the 1990 registered voter figures by census block along with a comparison to current registered voter figures. Chair Holmes asked about the fee and the process of hiring a consultant. Mr. Rosenthal suggested that the Planning Department conduct the search for the consultant and either bring back a list of names for this Commission to choose from or proceed to recommend a consultant to City Commission. Member Lopez -Anderson asked if it would be appropriate for citizens to notify colleagues to submit a proposal for this task. Mr. Rosenthal advised that it would be appropriate for any private consulting firm to submit a proposal, and that it would probably be the third week in May before the consultant could be hired by the City Commission. Mr. Rosenthal recapped the list of material to be provided for the next meeting: 1. District maps 2. Census map from Supervisor of Elections office Page 3 of 4 Districting Commission Organizational Meeting April 29, 1997 3. List of annexations since 1990 census 4. Numerical information regarding residential certificates of occupancy issued since 1: 5. New subdivisions approved by City Commission since the 1990 census. Member Hager suggested that using the water connections would be the easiest solution because a bill is sent for each meter; so taking that number, adding apartment numbers and subtracting commercial connections should give a reasonably accurate count for units occupied. Mr. Rosenthal said that, although that information may be accurate, taking the information and translating it into census blocks would be a different question. Member Williams, seconded by Member Hager, moved to request the City Manager to obtain a list of available consultants for this position and either this Commission can decide, or the City can decide which one suits the needs better. Motion carried 5-0. SCHEDULE vtEETING DATES Member Lopez -Anderson, seconded by Member Grafton, moved to meet Wednesday, May 21 at 7:30 p.m. in the commission chambers. Motion carried 5-0. COMMENTS There were no Commission comments at this time. Mayor Vandergrift, 2625 Cedar Bluff Lane, commended members for volunteering for this formidable task, and cautioned them to make every effort to follow Orange County precinct lines in the realignment of districts. He advised that the City Commission has budgeted $10,000 for this project. Chairman Holmes asked that his work phone number be removed from the list, as it is no longer a valid number. He said he has a new employer who is not in favor of his receiving telephone calls at work. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. Jean Grafton, City Clerk Page 4 of 4 MINUTES OF THE CITY OF OCOEE DISTRICTING COMMISSION MEETING HELD June 18, 1997 CALL TO ORDER Chair Holmes called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. in the commission chambers. Members observed a moment of silence and then repeated the pledge of allegiance. The roll was called and a quorum declared present. PRESENT: Chair Holmes, Members Grafton, Hager, Lopez -Anderson, and Williams. Also present were City Manager Shapiro, City Attorney Rosenthal, Senior Planner Horne, Orange County Elections Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis, Consultant Beitsch, and City Clerk Grafton. ABSENT: None APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF APRIL 29, 1997 Member Williams, seconded by Chair Holmes. moved to accept the minutes of the April 29. 1997 meeting as written. Motion carried 5-0. STAFF REPORT ON REDISTRICTING Senior Planner Horne reported that on May 15 staff had met to establish whether the research necessary for the population estimates for redistricting could be done in-house or a consultant would be needed for that portion of the project. Upon determining that a consultant would be needed, Mrs. Horne said that she conducted a nationwide search, ultimately choosing Owen Beitsch, Real Estate Research Consultants, of Orlando, as that firm's credentials rated in the top of the list of qualified firms and, as a local firm, the transportation costs would be at a minimum. She said that on June 3 the City Commission authorized funds in the amount of $9,875.00 for the consultant. Mrs. Horne described the process to be used by Mr. Beitsch to provide the current population estimate figures by census block for Mrs. Willis to incorporate into her data base for the drawing of the district lines. Consultant Owen vi. Beitsch, Real Estate Research Consultants, elaborated on Mrs. Home's overview, explaining that they had used two methods to collect information, i.e., tax roll data (linking tax ID numbers to addresses) and the recorded building permits, working closely with the Supervisor of Elections office verifying addresses. He said they began with the 1990 census and added information by the year to the present time. He added that, comparing the two ways, they had found the tax assessor's office to be 95-98% accurate. Mr. Beitsch also reviewed his memo which had been distributed to this Commission. He stated for the record that he could not thank Mrs. Willis enough for her assistance. Orange County Elections Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis said that as soon as the remaining addresses were cleared up, she would be able to load in the information and demonstrate to this Commission the options for drawing the district lines, and she asked for direction on the manner in which this Commission wished the lines to go (north/south, east/west, pie shaped, following major corridors, natural boundaries, accommodating seated commission, etc.). She pointed out that if any tweaking of the lines needed to be done to accommodate neighborhoods Mr. Beitsch would need to adjust the figures. Mr. Beitsch said that drawing your own lines distorts the utility of the information. Mrs. Horne said that she could provide copies of the map showing subdivisions if that would be helpful and consensus was reached to bring that map as well as the zoning map to Mrs. Willis's office when meeting there. CityManager Shapiro and Mrs. Horne both described the direction growth is taking. DISCUSSION/ACTION RE: INFORMATION PROVIDED In response to Mrs. Willis's request for direction, Chair Holmes stated that this Commission had a responsibility to do what was best for the citizens and balance out the high growth areas with those that were already built out, rather than to accommodate the seated Commission. Mr. Shapiro suggested that maps using the parameters mentioned earlier by Mrs. Willis be drawn up, experimenting with the figures, for starters. Chair Holmes gave a lengthy description of where he thought the lines should go. Commissioner Scott Anderson suggested that Districts 1 and 2 be made wider. Chair Holmes said that the focus should be on the location of citizens rather than registered voters in the distribution of population. Mrs. Willis stated that she had direction for about a half-dozen approaches to drawing the lines and would be prepared when this Commission was ready to meet in her office. SCHEDULE NEXT MEETING DATE Meeting dates were set as follows: July 9 @ 6:00 p.m. in the Supervisor of Elections Building at 119 W. Kaley, Orlando. July 16 @ 7:00 p.m. in the Commission Chambers. July 21 @ 7:00 p.m. Public Hearing in the Commission Chambers July 23 @ 6:00 p.m. in the Supervisor of Elections Building if needed. Mr. Beitsch stated that he would not be attending any of the scheduled meetings, so if his services were needed, he must be notified. Mr. Shapiro noted that any additional services would be at additional cost, as the information Mr. Beitsch was providing for Mrs. Willis would complete the existing contract. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:40 p.m. Approved: Districting Commission Jean Grafton. City Clerk Bruce Holmes, Chair MINUTES OF THE CITY OF OCOEE DISTRICTING COMMISSION MEETING HELD JULY 9, 1997 CALL TO ORDER This meeting was held in the office of Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis in the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Building, Orlando. This location was chosen to facilitate the redrawing of the district lines, as Mrs. Willis had prepared her computer with the current estimated population figures in the census blocks as provided by Owen Beitsch, Real Estate Research Consultants. Vice Chair Williams called the meeting to order at 6:25 p.m. The roll was called and a quorum declared present. PRESENT: Vice Chair Williams, Members Grafton, Hager, and Lopez -Anderson. Also present were City Manager Shapiro, City Attorney Rosenthal, Senior Planner Horne, Orange County SOE Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis, and City Clerk Grafton. ABSENT: Chair Holmes APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF JUNE 18, 1997 MEETING Member Hager, seconded by Member Grafton. moved to approve the minutes of the June 18. 1997 meeting as presented. Motion carried 4-0. Chair Holmes was not present. REPORT AND PRESENTATION SHOWING THE OPTIONS FOR DISTRICTING LINES USING CRITERIA SET BY DISTRICTING COMMISSION - SENIOR MAPPING SUPERVISOR WILLIS Mrs. Willis discussed the population estimates provided by the consultant and displayed 5 maps she had prepared using the criteria discussed at the previous meeting. Those were (1) current, (2) major roads, (3) north/south orientation, (4) least change, and (5) Federal/State Districts. Each map was given careful consideration, and after discussing the merits of each design the Commission chose to work with the map showing the least change (4). After the areas of potential growth were identified by City Manager Shapiro and Senior Planner Horne, the map was taken into the computer room and the Commission directed the change of some of the lines. Care was given to balance the population figures. Districts with greater potential for imminent growth were given areas with smaller population figures. Although it was not the prime concern at the time of the redrawing of the lines, the resulting map defined 4 districts with each of the seated City Commissioners in the district he/she currently represents. DISCUSSION/ACTION RE: CHOICE OF MAPS TO PRESENT TO CITY COMMISSION Consensus was reached to present only the current map and map (4) as revised during this meeting for the public hearing scheduled for July 21. Districting Commission Meeting July 9, 1997 DIRECTION TO STAFF/ATTORNEY Consensus was reached that a total of 15 maps each (current and map (4) revised) would be needed for the public hearing as well as a clean map (4) for the City Clerk's file. The maps will include the population in each district as well as the number of registered voters. All of these Mrs. Willis agreed to prepare by July 17. Senior Planner Home will prepare a map showing the districting lines as proposed by this Commission to be included in the ad which will be published in the West Orange Times for the public hearing scheduled for July 21. SET NEXT MEETING DATE Consensus was reached that the meeting scheduled for July 16 was not needed, therefore canceled. ADJOURNMENT Member Hager. seconded by Member Grafton. moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:43 p.m. Motion carried 4-0. Jean Grafton, City Clerk APPROVED Districting Commission Bruce Holmes, Chair Page 2 of 2 MINUTES OF THE CITY OF OCOEE DISTRICTING COMMISSION HELD JULY 21, 1997 CALL TO ORDER Chairman Homes called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m. in the commission chambers. A moment of silence was observed following the pledge of allegiance. The roll was called and a quorum declared present. PRESENT: Chairman Holmes, Members Grafton, Hager, Lopez -Anderson, and Williams. Also present were City Attorney Rosenthal, Senior Planner Home, Orange County SOE Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis, and City Clerk Grafton. ABSENT: None APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF JULY 9, 1997 MEETING Chairman Holmes asked that the record reflect that his absence from the previous meeting was excused due to illness in his family. Chairman Holmes, seconded by Member Grafton, moved to approve the minutes of the July 9. 1997 meeting as corrected. Motion carried 5-0. REPORT AND PRESENTATION SHOWING THE DISTRICTING LINES PROPOSED BY DISTRICTING COMMISSION In preparation for this hearing, each member had been provided with a copy of a map showing the current districts as well as a map showing the proposed changes which were agreed upon at the last meeting. A map of the current districts with an overlay showing the proposed changes was displayed on an easel for public viewing. City Attorney Rosenthal suggested that this Commission review the map prepared by Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis to determine that it was as they had directed at the last meeting and as they wished it to be. The map was found to be as this Commission had directed. Chairman Holmes stated for the record that he had met with Mrs. Willis in her office to review the map and had raised a question about the diagonal line between Chicago Avenue and California Avenue (between Districts 2 and 3). Mrs. Willis had explained that it was a natural barrier, an intermittent stream, that had been recognized for decades by the census bureau, and also that it had, at one time, been the municipal boundary. Member Williams asked about the population figures being taken to the fourth decimal point. Mrs. Willis explained that it had to do with vacancies and a formula used by the statisticians. She said that, although she had been told by them that she could appropriately ignore those figures after the decimal point, it was necessary to use them in order to make the total population count come out right. City Attorney Rosenthal pointed out that the chart provided by Mrs. Willis included the number of registered voters in each district as well as the total population. Ocoee Districting Commission Public Hearing July 21, 1997 PUBLIC HEARING The public hearing was opened. Commissioner Parker, the only citizen present, commented that it looked like good work to her. Senior Planner Horne advised that the ad for this public hearing had been placed in the West Orange Times and included a map showing the proposed district lines. The ad, larger than required, was 2 columns wide and 10 inches long. As there were no other citizens present who wished to speak, the public hearing was closed. DISCUSSION RE: COMMENTS Member Grafton expressed sincere appreciation for the assistance given to this Commission by Senior Planner Horne and SOE Senior Mapping Supervisor Willis. DIRECTION TO STAFF/ATTORNEY Member Hager asked that the map reflect the proper names for Starke Lake, Rose Lake, Steer Lake, and Pearl Lake, as all of those have appeared on recent maps with the names reversed. The ensuing discussion revealed that only Starke Lake was entirely within the city limits and Pearl Lake was one-half in and that those could be changed at the direction of this Commission if research in the State records for the official source of the names revealed that the lakes were originally named as such. Mrs. Hager pointed out also that Lake Bennet (which should be spelled Bennett) should be Lake Blanchard instead. Mrs. Horne said she would notify the GIS coordinators that she knows about the corrections. Mrs. Willis said she would change her maps accordingly. Mr. Rosenthal noted also that the name of the East-West Expressway should be moved over so that the whole words would be visible on the map. Member Williams. seconded by Member Lopez -Anderson, moved to present the map a prepared for this meeting with the corrections to the names of lakes as noted above to the Citv Commission for the redistricting of the Citv. Motion carried -0. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m. APPROVED Districting Commission Jean Grafton, City Clerk Bruce Holmes, Chairman Page 2 of 2 CITY OF OCOEE: REDISTRICTING ADVISORY COMMITTEE DISTRICT DISTRICT NUMBER CURRENT DISTRICT VOTERS BY CURRENT DISTRICT TOTAL VOTERS POPULATION BY CURRENT DISTRICT TOTAL POPULATION Current Districts 1 1 1696 8995 4493.0178 21007.3465 2 2 1181 2612.4252 3 3 2137 6009.7841 4 4 3981 7892.1194 Proposed Districts 1 1143 1 2 826 3 167 3277.6342 2136 5681.1225 1828.2461 575.2422 2 1 549 2724 1215.3836 5363.6464 2 355 784.1791 3 90 195.0996 4 17301 F 3168.9841 3 3 1880 1880 5239.4423 5239.4423 4 1 4 2255 0 4723.1353 4 2251 4723.1353 Orange County Supervisor of Elections: July 17, 1997 Map prepared by: Bill Cowles, Orange County Supervisor of Elections CITY OF, OCOEE PROPOSED CITY COMMISSION DISTRICTS 1997 Districting Commission Population Estimates as of 6/30/97 per Real Estate Research Consultants, Inc. North Commission District 1, Population: 5,681 Adjacent Municipalities Commission District 2, Population: 5,364 Unincorporated Area Commission District 3, Population: 5,239 Municipal Boundary ® Commission District 4, Population: 4,723 District Boundary TOTAL POPULATION: 21,007 July 14, 1997 Map prepared by: Bill Cowles, Orange County Supervisor of Elections