Correspondence
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1 Juanita Davalos
From: June Catalano
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 9:39 AM
To: Juanita Davalos
Subject: FW: Minor Tweaks to Election District Maps
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
From: Jack Prosek <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 9:32 AM
To: June Catalano <[email protected]>; Janet Coleson <[email protected]> Subject: Fwd: Minor Tweaks to Election District Maps
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
Sorry - I meant to copy you as well - so that you would not be blindsided by a last second request ! jp
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Jack Prosek <[email protected]>
Date: Tue, May 2, 2023 at 8:10 AM
Subject: Minor Tweaks to Election District Maps
To: tim flaherty <[email protected]>
Cc: matt rinn <[email protected]>, Sue Noack <[email protected]>, zac shess <[email protected]>, Al Vinson <[email protected]> Mayor Flaherty -
It has been noted that while the Maps produced by the districtR website are 98% of what is desired, the question arises as to whether the City Council has to accept one of the Maps EXACTLY as drawn or whether you will be able to make minor changes to achieve more logical boundaries.
The problem appears to arise from the limitations of the program regarding exact streets & property lines which may cross the boundaries of census tracts. Here are two examples where minor changes would be appropriate:
Boundary between NE & NW Districts:
The disrictR program did allow the homes on Vili Way, Eric Court & the west end of Odin Drive to be included in the NE District. However, it did not appear to allow the homes on Aleta Place, the west end of Kiki Drive, Greyfell Place, Halten Court, Tonstad Place, Paso Nogal Court & the homes on the west side of Morello to be included as well. Paso Nogal Park provides a huge barrier between these homes & the ones further west. One might also include the four homes on Morello Court in the NE District. 2 Boundary between the NW & SW Districts:
Looking at a more detailed map of the City, a reasonable division between these two Districts would be down the centerline of Boyd Road west to Pleasant Hill Road, south down the centerline & then west along the southernmost property lines of the homes on Atrice Lane, Croyden Drive, Kinder Lane & Twinview Place out to Taylor Blvd.
Both of these suggested tweaks would provide more rational boundaries for the Election Districts !! Please have the City Attorney address this issue during their presentations at the May 6th and May 22nd Public Hearings on the Election District Maps.
Jack Prosek
PH Resident / Homeowner / Voter
zz
1 Juanita Davalos
From: [email protected]
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 9:54 AM
To: June Catalano; Juanita Davalos; Geoff Gillette
Subject: Online Form Submittal: Email the City Council
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Name:* Daniel Safran
Street
Address:*
105 Rolling Green Circle
City* PLEASANT HILL
Phone
Number:
9259981094
Email:* [email protected]
Subject:* Districting
Question
or
Comment:
Dear City Council, I wish I could present my comments in person but, because immunity challenges make me vulnerable to Covid-19, I need to avoid large groups of people. I’m writing regarding plans for creating electoral districts in Pleasant Hill. I support having five districts and oppose having four districts and a mayor elected at large. My interest is to engage as many PH residents as possible in local governance and to assure that members of our city’s minority groups have maximum opportunities for representation. Having five districts will achieve this far better than four districts and a mayor elected at large! Of the various plans considered, draft map #5 is balanced as required by law and best meets the criteria for broad representation. I hope you will consider and choose a districting plan that maximizes Pleasant Hill residents' engagement in local government. Thank you. Daniel Safran Homeowner and Pleasant Hill Resident Upload File
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http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Admin/FormHistory.aspx?SID=16871 The following form was submitted via your website: Email the City Council Please note that all emails submitted through this website will be shared with all Councilmembers and certain City staff members. These emails are considered public records under the California Public Records Act (Govt.
Code Section 6250, et seq.):
Name:: Daniel Safran
2 Street Address:: 105 Rolling Green Circle
City: PLEASANT HILL
Phone Number:: 9259981094
Email:: [email protected]
Subject:: Districting
Question or Comment:: Dear City Council,
I wish I could present my comments in person but, because immunity challenges make me vulnerable to Covid19, I need to avoid large groups of people.
I’m writing regarding plans for creating electoral districts in Pleasant Hill. I support having five districts and oppose having four districts and a mayor elected at large. My interest is to engage as many PH residents as possible in local governance and to assure that members of our city’s minority groups have maximum opportunities for representation. Having five districts will achieve this far better than four districts and a mayor elected at large!
Of the various plans considered, draft map #5 is balanced as required by law and best meets the criteria for broad representation.
I hope you will consider and choose a districting plan that maximizes Pleasant Hill residents' engagement in local government.
Thank you.
Daniel Safran
Homeowner and Pleasant Hill Resident
Upload File Attachment here: No file was uploaded
Additional Information:
Form submitted on: 5/2/2023 9:53:45 AM
Submitted from IP Address: 67.188.249.161
Referrer Page: https://www.pleasanthillca.org/582/Contact-City-Council-Staff Form Address: http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Forms.aspx?FID=137 1 Juanita Davalos
From: Karen Yapp <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 12:41 PM
To: City Council
Subject: Comments regarding District Mapping
Attachments: Karen Yapp letter 5-2-23.pdf
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
Please accept the attached PDF letter of my comments after the 5/1/23 City Council meeting.
Thank you,
Karen Yapp
May 2, 2023
Dear City Council, City Manager, and City Attorney,
The May 1st Council Meeting was eye-opening. I realized several things at this meeting that concern me. I have enumerated them below.
1) Demographer’s Maps
I was shocked to realize, at the Council meeting last night, that apparently no one on the Council, and no city staff, had reviewed the demographer’s proposed maps prior to posting them for the public. The Council seemed to unanimously feel they were bad maps. Yet they were posted, and were the cause of the anger and frustration you experienced at the meeting.
Surely there must be someone working for the city who would have the knowledge and ability to review the demographer’s input. If you hired a consultant to design a library, wouldn’t someone in the city review and refine the design before it was released for public input? How is this any different?
2) 5 Districts vs 4 Districts
The Council has been virtually silent on the question of a 4-district split. No one from the community has submitted a 4-district option. The demographer’s 4-district map is as bad as his 5-district map. If, at the end of this, you decide to go with 4-districts, the public will feel that you’ve played a game with us through this whole process. You say you don’t want animosity, but that would create extreme animosity. So please make it clear whether the 4-district option is on or off the table. I strongly disagree with 4-districts for previously stated reasons. 3) May 6th Meeting – Saturday
The May 6th meeting needs to be held as more of an interactive discussion. During the May 1 meeting several statements were made that were not clear to me. In a different format I could have asked for clarification. Also, ideas come to people as they listen to you and to other residents. Being limited to 3 pre-scripted minutes, at a specified time, is not a substitute for real dialog. I agree that all map options should be displayed in a large scale for the meeting. You should eliminate the demographer’s Map 1 since everyone hated it. Also, the demographer should attend the May 6 meeting. Clearly, he knows nothing about Pleasant Hill. How can he possibly create a good map?
4) Deadline for Map Submittal for May 6 meeting
On May 1 we heard that the demographer requires 7 days to review a resident map submittal.
And for that reason, maps submitted last Friday could not be included on May 6. That 7-day window is for the demographer’s convenience. Actual time for his analysis is surely under 2 hours. The data is automatically generated. Since his first map was unacceptable, the city should request that he complete his review of the newer map(s) in less time so that they can be available on May 6th. Please negotiate with him to quickly analyze any maps received by noon on May 3 (for example). I plan to submit a 4-district option before that deadline. What good is it if no one will see it on May 6? By the next meeting this will all be a done deal. 5) Post DISTRICR Links to Resident Maps
It is nice to have the maps superimposed on a google map. But it would be better for some of us (those who have created maps or are comfortable with software) to have the map number for the DISTRICTR.ORG web site. Then we could see it there with the accompanying data for population, etc. It would probably help the Council to review the maps too. This website is set up so anyone can look at a previously saved map, but if they edit it, it will be saved as a new map.
It won’t affect the original.
Karen Yapp
39-year resident of Pleasant Hill
1 Juanita Davalos
From: Michelle Simone <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 1:10 PM
To: City Council
Subject: Submission of 4-District Maps for Demographer
Attachments: 4-District Map v2 Population.png; 4-District Map v2 VAP.png; 4-District Map Population.png; 4-District Map VAP.png
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
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City Councilmembers,
I am writing to submit two 4-district maps for review by the demographer. However, I only wish 4-district maps to be considered if councilmembers disregard the 5-district community maps as a 5-district map is a better fit for our City.
These 4-district maps have been created to honor the requests of residents in the community who want to keep specific neighborhoods together. The neighborhoods that have been requested to be kept together are College Park/DVC, Woodside Meadows, Poet's Corner, Downtown Pleasant Hill, Pleasant Valley, Gregory Gardens, and the communities east of Contra Costa Blvd. The maps submitted keep the aforementioned communities together and limit the division of the communities to the east of Contra Costa Blvd. and Gregory Gardens.
In addition to keeping neighborhoods together, these maps were created to keep communities of interest in East Pleasant Hill together. While our maps may not be able to produce a 50.1%+ citizen's voting population it's important to recognize these communities of interest as more diverse with different needs that could be better represented with two districts. Since our minority resident population and minority voting population is higher in East Pleasant Hill we can help ensure that the voices of all members of our community are heard and represented in district elections if we protect these two areas from being divided.
Maps for Consideration:
https://districtr.org/plan/183189
https://districtr.org/plan/176696
I want to emphasize that these 4-district maps are being submitted only if the City Council decides to adopt a 4- district map. I, along with other community members who have provided public comments, do not want a 4- district map for our city. I believe that a 5-district map would be better suited for our community. Please make this clear during map review at hearings and when displayed for the public.
In the event that council members decide to adopt a 4-district map, I request that these community maps be considered for district elections. The two maps that I am submitting have been created with careful consideration of the requests made by community members and will ensure that the neighborhoods are kept together and communities of interest are represented.
2 Thank you for considering community submitted maps,
Michelle
, Population I Data Layers Evaluation
..... Population Balance
CD Uses 2020 Decennial Census prison-adjusted data
on 2020 Blocks.
1 8,338
8,454
1 8,913
1 8,903
UNASSIGNED
POPULATION:
MAX. POPULATION
DEVIATION:
Idea l: 233,613.8
1,133,461
96.43%
O Highlight unassigned units
r
+
Buchanan
Field Airport
Population Data Layers Evaluation
~ Population by Race
.... Voting Age Population by Race
co M PARE j White VAP vi
WITH j Hispanic VAP vi
AND jAsian VAP vi
WVAP HVAP AVAP
0 1111 • 15.4% 23.7%
::!. - • 10% 14%
0% 0% 0%
111111 14% 15.6%
e - 11.6% 10.3%
Overall - 24.4% 18.8%
Briones Peak j
Population Data Layers Evaluation
Population Balance
CD Uses 2020 Decennial Census prison-adjusted data on 2020 Blocks. 1 8,958 8,275 18,472 1 8,903
Ideal: 233,613.8
UNASSIGNED POPULATION:
MAX. POPULATION DEVIATION :
O Highlight unassigned units
1,133,461
96.46%
Briones 7ak
Population Data Layers Evaluation
Population by Race
Voting Age Population by Race
COMPARE l whiteVAP
WITH I Hispanic VAP
AND IAsianVAP
WVAP
0 :1
-- . 0%
0 -
Overall
--
HVAP AVAP
14.9% 23.3%
10.4% 13.6% 0% 0%
13.9% 15
.7%
11.6% 10
.3%
24.4% 18.8%
1 Juanita Davalos
From: Karen Yapp <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 1:22 PM
To: City Council
Subject: District Map for 4-District option
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
I am submitting this 4-District map for consideration (link below). So far, the only 4-District map is the one created by the demographer. His map is similar to his very unpopular 5-District map. He was able to get one coalition minority majority group, but just barely. He did that at the expense of splitting up multiple neighborhoods and making convoluted configurations. There is no way to accomplish it otherwise.
I disagree with the 4-District option. However, since the 4-District option is still on the table, I'd like my map to be considered. It has a population deviation of 8.4%. It is quite compact. It follows major roads and creeks. It fails to create a coalition minority majority, although the SE area comes close. It preserves all neighborhoods except for the DVC area west of Norse Drive.
Thank you,
Karen Yapp
Link to map: https://districtr.org/plan/183198
2 1
Juanita Davalos
From: [email protected]
Sent: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 2:33 PM
To: June Catalano; Juanita Davalos; Geoff Gillette
Subject: Online Form Submittal: Email the City Council
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
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Email the City Council
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Name:* Cindy Rubin
Street
Address:*
Hoover Court
City* Pleasant Hill
Phone
Number:
Email:* [email protected]
Subject:* District Based Elections
Question
or
Comment:
May 2, 2023 Dear Mayor Flaherty, Vice Mayor Rinn, Councilmembers Noack, Shess, Vinson and Staff- I watched the Pleasant Hill City Council meeting last night (5.1.2023) where item 10.3, “Public Hearing to Consider Draft Maps and Composition of Districts for By-District Elections” was discussed. I know that creating maps is challenging and that there are always going to be those who feel that they are on the wrong side of any decision that’s made. That being said, I have to admit that when I first reviewed the two maps the city’s demographer came up with, the boundaries drawn did not make sense to me. The five district map that draws the boundary cutting Masefield from Shelly and the rest of Poet’s Corner to the west, definitely stood out. I live in the very southern part of the city, south of Oak Park and East of Pleasant Hill Road, which is included in the proposed District 1 along with Masefield and a part of Patterson Blvd. It may be that we have areas of interest that align with those two streets because we are relatively close geographically, but the created district then stretches all the way to the east side of the freeway up to Monument Blvd. and Mohr Lane. Creating a boundary where Patterson is split at Hawthorne between two districts, and Masefield is split from Shelly, does not appear to take those neighbors who live next to each other into consideration. Those areas have a very clear community of interest. While all of us in the city have common concerns, the residents who live near the freeway and the Crossroads Shopping Center have specific concerns to their location that vary greatly from ours in the southern part of the city. As others pointed out last night, the other four districts on that map have issues that should be similarly addressed as well. Ms. Colson and Mr. Priest’s comments last night confirmed that all of the maps that have been submitted by the city and residents, and reviewed so far, fall within the allowable standard deviation of less than 10% and have negligible percentage differences creating “majority minority” districts. They also spoke to the factors that should be considered when creating separate districts, like: CVAP, common interests, compactness, and natural and non-natural boundaries. According to Ms. Colson and Mr. Priest, the concern for achieving the highest percentage of a majority minority district is not the only factor to consider and that the resident submitted maps with close percentages, along with consideration of the other 2 factors, would all be acceptable. Despite the fact that our city would not have any one district with a majority minority, having two out of the five districts with a higher minority population seems more aligned with our city’s goals of diversity and inclusion than creating one district with the bulk of our minority population. Many of last night’s speakers addressed the fact that the Sherman Acres/Fair Oaks/Ellinwood Area and the College Park/DVC neighborhoods should be their own districts. I agree 100%. Each neighborhood in our city has its own unique characteristics and splitting those areas up, or combining geographically distant neighborhoods, should only be done if it makes sense. I know, and/or have met, all of the council members as I have lived in PH for 37 years. I know you all to be good people who care about our community. Clearly, you aren’t in it for the money, so having constituents question your motivation is hard. I appreciate the time and energy you put into trying to make things better in the city. Your concern for all the residents of Pleasant Hill is laudable and the reason why many of you have been reelected a number of times.
However, we now have the opportunity to divide the city into districts so that ideally, each distinct neighborhood can have local representation on the council. Pleasant Hill residents are interested and invested in this process. I was proud of the citizens of PH who took the time to prepare their comments and stayed on message last night. It was good to see a community coming together without yelling or shouting. While one or two of the speakers were more passionate about the process than others, I was a little disappointed with some of the council’s comments afterwards because they seemed to be more defensive than constructive. I would have appreciated more comments about why/how the city demographer’s maps were divided the way they were.
Unfortunately, between the hiring of a demographer instead of going with an independent redistricting commission, comments previously made by the Mayor about his area of residence during a city council meeting, and the resultant maps showing what appears to be districts with forced boundaries, it’s not a leap to see why residents might question things. Those may be the current optics of the situation, but it doesn’t mean they’re right about their assumptions. I hope that as we go further into the process, it will be clear that you will be doing what is best for all the citizens and the city. Thank you, Cindy Rubin
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http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Admin/FormHistory.aspx?SID=16872 The following form was submitted via your website: Email the City Council Please note that all emails submitted through this website will be shared with all Councilmembers and certain City staff members. These emails are considered public records under the California Public Records Act (Govt.
Code Section 6250, et seq.):
Name:: Cindy Rubin
Street Address:: Hoover Court
City: Pleasant Hill
Phone Number::
Email:: [email protected]
Subject:: District Based Elections
Question or Comment:: May 2, 2023
3 Dear Mayor Flaherty, Vice Mayor Rinn, Councilmembers Noack, Shess, Vinson and StaffI watched the Pleasant Hill City Council meeting last night (5.1.2023) where item 10.3, “Public Hearing to Consider Draft Maps and Composition of Districts for By-District Elections” was discussed. I know that creating maps is challenging and that there are always going to be those who feel that they are on the wrong side of any decision that’s made.
That being said, I have to admit that when I first reviewed the two maps the city’s demographer came up with, the boundaries drawn did not make sense to me. The five district map that draws the boundary cutting Masefield from Shelly and the rest of Poet’s Corner to the west, definitely stood out. I live in the very southern part of the city, south of Oak Park and East of Pleasant Hill Road, which is included in the proposed District 1 along with Masefield and a part of Patterson Blvd. It may be that we have areas of interest that align with those two streets because we are relatively close geographically, but the created district then stretches all the way to the east side of the freeway up to Monument Blvd. and Mohr Lane.
Creating a boundary where Patterson is split at Hawthorne between two districts, and Masefield is split from Shelly, does not appear to take those neighbors who live next to each other into consideration. Those areas have a very clear community of interest. While all of us in the city have common concerns, the residents who live near the freeway and the Crossroads Shopping Center have specific concerns to their location that vary greatly from ours in the southern part of the city. As others pointed out last night, the other four districts on that map have issues that should be similarly addressed as well.
Ms. Colson and Mr. Priest’s comments last night confirmed that all of the maps that have been submitted by the city and residents, and reviewed so far, fall within the allowable standard deviation of less than 10% and have negligible percentage differences creating “majority minority” districts. They also spoke to the factors that should be considered when creating separate districts, like: CVAP, common interests, compactness, and natural and non-natural boundaries.
According to Ms. Colson and Mr. Priest, the concern for achieving the highest percentage of a majority minority district is not the only factor to consider and that the resident submitted maps with close percentages, along with consideration of the other factors, would all be acceptable. Despite the fact that our city would not have any one district with a majority minority, having two out of the five districts with a higher minority population seems more aligned with our city’s goals of diversity and inclusion than creating one district with the bulk of our minority population.
Many of last night’s speakers addressed the fact that the Sherman Acres/Fair Oaks/Ellinwood Area and the College Park/DVC neighborhoods should be their own districts. I agree 100%. Each neighborhood in our city has its own unique characteristics and splitting those areas up, or combining geographically distant neighborhoods, should only be done if it makes sense.
I know, and/or have met, all of the council members as I have lived in PH for 37 years. I know you all to be good people who care about our community. Clearly, you aren’t in it for the money, so having constituents question your motivation is hard. I appreciate the time and energy you put into trying to make things better in the city. Your concern for all the residents of Pleasant Hill is laudable and the reason why many of you have been reelected a number of times. However, we now have the opportunity to divide the city into districts so that ideally, each distinct neighborhood can have local representation on the council. Pleasant Hill residents are interested and invested in this process.
I was proud of the citizens of PH who took the time to prepare their comments and stayed on message last night.
It was good to see a community coming together without yelling or shouting. While one or two of the speakers were more passionate about the process than others, I was a little disappointed with some of the council’s 4 comments afterwards because they seemed to be more defensive than constructive. I would have appreciated more comments about why/how the city demographer’s maps were divided the way they were. Unfortunately, between the hiring of a demographer instead of going with an independent redistricting commission, comments previously made by the Mayor about his area of residence during a city council meeting, and the resultant maps showing what appears to be districts with forced boundaries, it’s not a leap to see why residents might question things. Those may be the current optics of the situation, but it doesn’t mean they’re right about their assumptions. I hope that as we go further into the process, it will be clear that you will be doing what is best for all the citizens and the city.
Thank you,
Cindy Rubin
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Additional Information:
Form submitted on: 5/2/2023 2:33:00 PM
Submitted from IP Address: 67.188.22.169
Referrer Page: https://www.pleasanthillca.org/1557/District-Based-Election-Process Form Address: http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Forms.aspx?FID=137 1 Juanita Davalos
From: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, May 4, 2023 11:28 AM
To: June Catalano; Juanita Davalos; Geoff Gillette
Subject: Online Form Submittal: Email the City Council
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
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Name:* Robert Langgley
Street
Address:*
Pleasant Hill
City* Pleasant HIll, CA
Phone
Number:
Email:* [email protected]
Subject:* District Map
Question
or
Comment:
I would like to make two requests: 1. Please create a FAQ section of the City website so that people not familiar with district elections and the process can quickly understand the issues and maps being presented. This is complicated and people shouldn't have to wade through meeting agenda and staff reports. 2. I would like to submit the following map for consideration. I have attach an image of it and it can accessed by the City hired demographer at https://districtr.org/plan/183289, where JSON and CSV files can be downloaded for demographic analysis. Please direct the demographer to the link for inclusion in his comparisons. Thank you.
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Demographer Inspired Map.jpg
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http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Admin/FormHistory.aspx?SID=16878 The following form was submitted via your website: Email the City Council Please note that all emails submitted through this website will be shared with all Councilmembers and certain City staff members. These emails are considered public records under the California Public Records Act (Govt.
Code Section 6250, et seq.):
2 Name:: Robert Langgley
Street Address:: Pleasant Hill
City: Pleasant HIll, CA
Phone Number::
Email:: [email protected]
Subject:: District Map
Question or Comment:: I would like to make two requests:
1. Please create a FAQ section of the City website so that people not familiar with district elections and the process can quickly understand the issues and maps being presented. This is complicated and people shouldn't have to wade through meeting agenda and staff reports.
2. I would like to submit the following map for consideration. I have attach an image of it and it can accessed by the City hired demographer at https://districtr.org/plan/183289, where JSON and CSV files can be downloaded for demographic analysis. Please direct the demographer to the link for inclusion in his comparisons.
Thank you.
Upload File Attachment here: Demographer Inspired Map.jpg Additional Information:
Form submitted on: 5/4/2023 11:27:30 AM
Submitted from IP Address: 204.102.76.163
Referrer Page: https://www.pleasanthillca.org/582/Contact-City-Council-Staff Form Address: http://www.pleasanthillca.org/Forms.aspx?FID=137 Population Data Layers Evaluation
..- Population Balance
CD Uses 2020 Decennial Census prison-adjusted data on 2020 Blocks.
1 6,998
6,865
16,874
6,951
16,961
Demographer inspired map
maximizing minority groups &
minimizing population variance
https://districtr.org/plan/183289
1 Juanita Davalos
From: John Okeefe <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 4, 2023 4:13 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Controversial Redistricting Plan
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
1) Why is the plan controversial?
2)and is the City heading for an avoidable, expensive, lawsuit? Tx. John Sent from my iPhone
1 Juanita Davalos
From: Frank Miceli <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, May 4, 2023 4:45 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: The Folly of District Based Elections In Pleasant Hill CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender.
Greetings,
I just learned that the City of Pleasant Hill intends to change from at-large municipal elections to district- based elections next month.
I've not heard about this change until now, the midnight hour.
Presumably it was widely announced. How has public input been sought? How was the citizenry informed of the public hearings on this subject in March and April? How may I review the content of those two public hearings and what input was offered by the public at that time?
Many CA cities have changed from at-large to district-based elections. What is the evidence for this change significantly increasing minority representation on city councils? If evidence exists, were the cities involved as free of racial/ethnic structuring as PH? What is the evidence for the impact on city financial costs, plus or minus? What is the estimated cost impact for Pleasant Hill? In my opinion this is a waste of time and money, attempting to forcefully jam Pleasant Hill into an identity politics mold for which it is ill suited. Assuming there is no significant evidence of prohibited discrimination, in the event of lawsuits the City is likely judgement proof. Which means that the pressure to "do
something" should be resisted; that "no change" is the wisest course.
2 PH is about 70% white, 14% Asian, 9% two or more races(mainly white and Hispanic), not quite 4% black and 3% other. I've lived in the city for 37 years and I'm not aware of any significant geographical concentration of blacks, or Hispanics or Asians. More than half of all Hispanics characterize themselves as white or a combination. Further, with respect to Asians, we are actually talking about Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Pakistani, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Thai and various other East and South Asian groups that have little or no commonality of interests. Given these facts, how will a change to district voting in PH promise to actually affect voting results in an authentically representative way? There are no authentic racial or ethnic "districts" in PH so the fallback position, devising an equal number of districts by population is a distinction without a difference.
Then too this scheme fails to recognize one crucially important identity group at all--that of women! There may well be a difference in how women are distributed among the newly devised districts depending on such things as occupation, marriage rates, etc. What impact does the creation of new voting districts that are somehow responsive to racial and ethnic groupings do to the equal representation of women?
Presumably our city officials considered these obvious problems before their agreement to implement District Based Voting. I understand that district-based maps have already been devised.
Please tell me how the problems I identify above were dealt with in creating district based maps and otherwise moving forward to enact this initiative.
Cordially,
Frank Miceli