MINUTES
Tuesday, January 4, 2022 6:30 P.M. Open Session
SPECIAL MEETING
CITY COUNCIL, AIRPORT COMMISSION,
MARINA ABRAMS B NON-PROFIT CORPORATION, PRESTON PARK SUSTAINABLE
COMMUNITY NON-PROFIT CORPORATION, SUCCESSOR AGENCY OF THE FORMER
MARINA REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY AND MARINA GROUNDWATER
SUSTAINABILITY AGENCY
Council Chambers
211 Hillcrest Avenue
Marina, California
Zoom Meeting URL: https://zoom.us/j/730251556
Zoom Meeting Telephone Only Participation: 1-669-900-9128 - Webinar ID: 730 251 556
In accordance with California Government Code §54953(e)(1)(A) and (C) and the Proclamation of a State of Emergency issued by Governor Newsom o n March 4, 2020, under the provisions of Go vernment Code §8625 relat ed to the COVID -19 (coronavirus) pandemic, consistent with recommendations by State and local health officials regarding social distancing and in order to prevent an imminent risk to the health and safety of attendees as determine d in Resolution 2022-134, public participation in City of Marina City Council public meetings shall be electronic only and without a physical location for public participation until the earlier of December 16, 2022, or such time as the City Council may ado pt a resolution in accordance with Government Code §54953(e)(3). This meeting is being broadcast “live” on Access Media Productions (AMP) Community Television Cable 25 and on the City of Marina Channel and on the internet at https://accessmediaproductions.org/
1. CALL TO ORDER
2. ROLL CALL & ESTA BLISHMENT OF QUORUM: (City Council, Airport Commissioners, Marina Abrams B Non -Profit Corporation, Preston Park Sustainable Communities Nonpr ofit Corporation, Successor Agency of the For mer Redevelopment Agency Members and Marina Groundwater Sustainability Agency)
MEMBERS PRESE NT: Cristina Medina Dirksen, David Burnett, Lisa Berkley, Mayor Pro-Tem/Vice Chair Kathy Biala, Mayor/Chair Bruce C. Delgado
3. MOMENT OF SILENCE & PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE (Please stand)
4. PUBLIC HEARINGS:
a. City Council open public hearing takin g testimony f rom public and consider adopting Resolution No. 2022-, receiving public and city council input on the draft revised city council voting district boundary maps.
MINUTES for City Council Meeting of Tuesday, January 4, 2022 Page 2
Council Questions: For the people who submitted maps using the Distr ict R Software and were rejected can training be implemented so people can go back and resubmit their maps for consideration? If maps that were disallowed b ecause they use Distric t R and were resubmitted will they retain the same numbering or will they get new designation? Map 209, did you draw a number for in this case, trying to respond to prior comment about grouping, a rental district to give renters higher probability of having someone represent them on City Council ? Do you think it would be nearly impossible to draw it so that the Reindollar community, south of Reindollar Avenue which is part of District 2 could somehow be part of something else ? Did you give any thought to the current District 1 and current District 4 who weren't able to vote in the last election to give them a chance to vote in 2022? Is it true that depending on how we draw these boundaries whatever ends up being called District One or District four may have those concerns I mentioned earlier ? Census Blocks – so you’re saying per federal law we have to be in compliance and keep the census blocks ? When we think of all the, the parameters that we have are we seeing maps or the maps that you've we've narrowed them down to do they include the need to keep the census blocks together ? So none of the maps had that issue in terms of even the ones that were disqualified for that you're not presenting that we're not population balanced?
Public Comments:
• Audra Walton – Appreciate all the hard work that you guys do. Prefers t he at -large process.
Districts processes are quite troublesome. Found using the Dave ’s redistricting software tool cumbersome, blocky and c ouldn't make the software do wha t I wanted to do with respect to selecting certain neighborhoods . Concerned about the expensive neighborhoods next to Preston Park. Would like the opportunity to resubmit her map, feels it was good one. would like an access to a tool that would help me to submit a map that is population balanced. • Doug Yount – Reiterated that this is something you have to be real car eful with, district elections that that is both helpful and hurtful and can create significant issues in the future you may not see .
Asked does the existing map the existing district map that's in place , how does it stack up relative to the criteria on the overall rules and regu lations, both federal and state ? Why again, is this a critical policy issue that the council must address ? Council may want to think carefully as a council at the policy level versus boundary level. How will the map look 30-years from now? • Brian McCarthy – Echoed previous speakers. not convinced that out at large elections are right f or Marina. Worry about the law of unintended consequences and that this process may actually exacerbate the problem. Regarding census blocks, i s it definitively possible as part of this process to change the way a census block looks or not? How do we work with the census folks to possibly take a look at those blocks in the future? Minimizing voters shifted in different election years - can NDC prov ide for each map, a data point about how many people will kind of be doubled disenfranchised if you will and other words didn't get to vote in 2020 and will also not get to v ote in 2022? Sequencing – what does that word actually mean? Can it be explained? • Paula Pelot – found it very disturbing that those of us that apparently used US District R Software erroneously that our maps have been not considered toni ght and concerned your being asked to narrow this down to focus groups bit they were not pr esented as part of the packet . Commented about Preston and Abrams being lumped together with the soci o economic group that have very different interests. Some of the maps addressed that. Important that the other map s be allowed to be redrawn and given as much consideration and perhaps direction as you are providing on these groups this evening . Commented on the at -large versus district elections and bad move on city ’s part to cave to this. Hopes that at some point in time someone will look into how this came about, who was behind it. Agrees that in fact we are dividing rather than helping our community stand together.
MINUTES for City Council Meeting of Tuesday, January 4, 2022 Page 3
DELGADO/BIALA: TO APPROVE RESOLUTION NO. 2022 -01, RECEIVING PUBLIC AND
CITY COUNCIL INPUT ON THE DRAFT REVISED CITY COUNCIL VOTING DISTRICT BOUNDARY MAPS; AND DIRECT NATIONAL DEMOGRAPHICS CORPORATION TO:
1. TO PAY ATTENTION TO R-4 DISTRICTS THAT MAYBE THEY CAN DOMINATE A DISTRICT.
2. TO PAY ATTENTION TO PRE STON AND ABRAMS, THAT IN WAYS THAT
WE CAN TO THE MOST EXTENT POSSIBLE COMBINE THAT WITH
CENTRAL MARINA, AND TRY OUR B EST NOT TO INCLUDE HIGHER
ECONOMIC STRATA
3. THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT MAP 209 IS AN EXAMPLE OF an R -4
DISTRICT DOM INATION IN ONE DISTRICT HERE AND THAT IT MAKES AN ATTEMPT TO PUT PRESTON PARK WITH CENTRAL MARINA.
4. WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT MAP 105 PUTS P RESTON AND ABRAMS WITH
CENTRAL MARINA, ALTHOUGH IT ALSO DOES INCLUDE SOME HIGHER
STRATA AREAS
5. WE ALLOW AND ENCOURAGE NEW M APS TO CONTINUE TO BE
SUBMITTED PRIOR TO FEBRUARY 1, HOPING THAT THOSE FOLKS THAT
WERE DISENFRANCHISED BY USING A TECHNIQUE THAT DIDN'T TURN
OUT W ELL CAN, CAN TRY T O GET THE THEIR MAPS BACK WITH A
TECHNIQUE THAT WORKS FOR THEM
6. THAT WE'D LIKE TO SEE AN EXAMPLE OR TWO MAPS THAT MAKE AN
EFFORT TO SHARE OUR TWO ECONOMIC AREAS BETWEEN DISTRICTS
7. THAT WE'RE NOT SELECTING OR EXPRESSING A PREFERENCE FOR
ANY PARTICULAR MAP AT THIS TIME
5-0-0-0 Motion Passes by Roll Call Vote
5. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 9:05 PM
Anita Sharp, Deputy City Clerk
ATTEST:
Bruce C. Delgado, Mayor