Inclusiveness, Community Engagement, and Governmental Processes Committee TO: INCLUSIVENESS, COMMUNITY DATE: NOVEMBER 2, 2022
ENGAGEMENT, AND GOVERNMENTAL
PROCESSESS COMMITTEE
FROM: CITY CLERK WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: RESHAPE RIVERSIDE REDISTRICTING UPDATE
ISSUE:
Review and Discuss the Reshape Riverside Redistricting Update.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the Inclusiveness, Community Engagement, and Governmental Processes Committee:
Receive and file an update on the Reshape Riverside Redistricting Plan; Consider Community of Interest Testimony and Draft Redistricting Maps; and Provide further direction to Redistricting Partners and City staff as the Inclusiveness, Community Engagement, and Governmental Processes Committee deems appropriate while implementing the City's Reshape Riverside Redistricting Plan.
BACKGROUND:
Riverside City Charter Section 402 requires City Council, by ordinance, to divide the city boundaries into seven wards, review the boundary limits of the wards every ten years, and adjust, by ordinance, those boundaries to provide for a substantially equal number of residents in each Ward. The City must adopt its ward boundaries no later than August 2023.
On January 11, 2022, after consideration of the various redistricting approaches, the City Council determined that the Inclusiveness, Community Engagement, and Governmental Processes Committee (ICGC) oversee and advise staff on the Redistricting process and approved the tentative timeline for the City's Reshape Riverside Redistricting Outreach Plan (Outreach Plan).
On August 3, 2022, the ICGC hosted its first public hearing. During the hearing, the Committee received public testimony. It directed staff to add two in-person Saturday meetings to the City's outreach plan, including the working community who cannot attend the meetings during the week.
Due to the truncated schedule, staff included an additional in-person meeting, the last community workshop within the City's current Outreach Plan on Saturday, October 29, 2022, On October 5, 2022, the ICGC conducted its second public hearing. During the hearing, the Committee received a report on the outreach efforts, received public testimony, and reviewed four maps introduced for their consideration. Two of the four maps (Draft A and B) were drafted by Redistricting Partners; a community member submitted Draft B via the DistrictR tool, and Draft C submission by the Brown and Black Redistricting Alliance.
DISCUSSION:
The post-map community workshops are underway throughout the city. The last community workshop will occur in person on Saturday, October 28, 2022, in alignment with the Reshape Riverside outreach plan.
Public members submitted a draft map through DistrictR (Plan 8231 ID: 145275). However, the Committee may not consider this submission unless significant changes are made to ensure the wards have relatively equal populations. The Committee may consider providing Redistricting Partners guidance on changes to uplift the map as a draft for future consideration.
Demographer Note: The map submission is unique as it uses the freeway as a divider between northwest and southeast Riverside. The total deviation is 15.4%.
In response to public COI testimony provided during the Public Hearing, Redistricting Partners submitted two additional maps, Draft A2 and C2, for the Committee's consideration. The Demographers narrative for the draft maps is as follows:
Draft Map A: minimal neighborhood splits (Redistricting Partners) Draft A was created based on COI testimony while maintaining as many neighborhoods as possible. Ward 2 has the least number of residents, with a negative deviation of 3.3%, and Ward 5 has the largest deviation at 2.5% Total deviation: 5.8%
19 neighborhoods were kept together (Arlington South, Presidential Park and Arlington Heights were slightly split due to the neighborhood lines and census geography not lining up) 8 neighborhoods splits
The COI “South rural Riverside” as described in DistrictR ID: 141787 and the Equestrian Community from the COI Form submission by “Anna” is kept whole The majority of Casa Blanca was swapped from Ward 4 to Ward 5, which reflects COI testimony received in public outreach meetings Draft Map A2: Casa Blanca kept whole
Draft A2 keeps maintains the structure of Draft A, but was adjusted to keep all of Casa Blanca in Ward 5 at the request of the Committee and community members.
Total deviation: 8.9%
20 neighborhoods kept together
7 neighborhoods split
Draft Map B: minimum change (Redistricting Partners)
Draft B was created to establish a smaller total deviation while trying to maintain the current lines as much as possible. Boundaries between wards 1 and 2 were adjusted to smooth out the boundaries and maintain more of the University neighborhood in Ward 2. Changes in wards 3 and 4 naturally occurred due to the changes in the census geography data between 2010 and 2020. Changes in Ward 6 occurred to smooth out the lines and follow the highway when possible. Ward 2 has the least number of residents with a deviation of -2.6%, and Ward 5 has the largest deviation at 1.3%.
Total Deviation: 3.9%
Neighborhoods that were previously split continue to be split. 14 neighborhoods kept whole
13 neighborhoods split
Draft Map C: DistrictR 141291 (Community Plan)
Draft C was created by a member of the community and submitted on DistrictR (ID: 141291). It was slighted edited by Redistricting Partners to ensure contiguity and to make the boundary lines easier to understand. The map was uplifted due to it maintaining numerous communities of interest and neighborhoods and having compact wards and appropriate population deviations.
Ward 6 has the lowest deviation at -2.8% and Ward 5 has the highest deviation at 3.4%.
Total deviation: 6.2%
16 neighborhoods kept together (Arlington Heights and Hunter Industrial Park neighborhoods are slightly split due to neighborhood lines and census geography data not lining up) 11 neighborhoods split
The majority of Casa Blanca was swapped from Ward 4 to Ward 3, which reflects COI testimony received in public outreach meetings Creates a similarly shaped ward (Ward 4) to the COI testimony submitted in DistrictR 139474, created to maintain similar neighborhoods Draft Map C2: Casa Blanca kept whole
Draft C2 maintains the structure of Draft C but was adjusted to keep all of Casa Blanca in Ward 3 at the request of the Committee and community members.
Total deviation: 7%
17 neighborhoods kept together
10 neighborhoods split
Draft Map D: Brown and Black Redistricting Alliance (Community Plan) Draft D was submitted by the community organization Brown and Black Redistricting Alliance, a group that has been active in this redistricting cycle. They will be submitting a map narrative for the committee hearing. The map was selected for minimizing neighborhood and communities of interest splits and for having appropriate population deviations. Ward 2 has the lowest deviation at -3.1%, and Ward 1 has the highest deviation at 2%.
Total Deviation: 5.1%
18 neighborhoods were kept whole (Presidential Park, Downtown, Eastside, and Arlington Heights were slightly split due to the neighborhood lines and census geography data not lining up) 9 neighborhoods split
Swaps Casa Blanca was swapped from Ward 4 to Ward 2, which reflects COI testimony received in public outreach meetings Redistricting Partners will provide the Committee with an update on the following:
Communities of Interest Testimony and Draft Maps;
Next steps for the Reshape Riverside Redistricting process; and Post-maps community outreach schedule.
Staff anticipates revising this report seven (7) days before the meeting date to include any draft map submissions after publishing this report.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
The City’s Redistricting Plan contributes to the City Council’s Envision 2025 Strategic Plan Priority and Goals:
Community Well-Being – Ensuring safe and inclusive neighborhoods where everyone can thrive with the following goal:
Goal 2.4 - Support programs and innovations that enhance community safety, encourage neighborhood engagement, and build public trust; and, High Performing Government – Providing world-class public service that is efficient, accessible, and responsible to all, with the following goals:
Goal 5.2 - Utilize technology, data, and process improvement strategies to increase efficiencies, guide decision making, and ensure services are accessible and distributed equitably throughout all geographic areas of the City.
Goal 5.3 - Enhance communication and collaboration with community members to improve transparency, build public trust, and encourage shared decision-making.
The proposed Redistricting format, public outreach, and marketing strategy align with the Envision 2025 Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust – The establishment of a redistricting format and the outreach strategy that includes workshops in every ward to draft new Ward boundaries are resident-led participation and public input, creating sound policy, inclusive of community engagement in the decision-making process.
Equity – Community members will utilize interactive tools. Some may participate in a redistricting commission to ensure that newly established ward boundaries comply with federal and state laws that encourage equity for all stakeholders.
Fiscal Responsibility – Riverside is a prudent steward of public funds and ensures responsible management of the City's financial resources while providing quality public services to all. The City Clerk's Office is committed to exploring services provided internally instead of consultants and looking for creative ways to reduce the redistricting program's fiscal impact and outreach efforts.
Innovation– The redistricting website will host interactive tools promoting collaborative public partnerships with redrawing ward boundaries. Riverside's Redistricting Framework includes a marketing strategy that will consist of non-English languages, including American Sign Language Sustainability & Resiliency – Riverside is committed to meeting the present needs without compromising the needs of the future and ensuring the City's capacity to persevere, adapt and grow during fluctuating times alike. Reviewing the ward boundaries every ten years is essential to maintain sustainable and resilient representation for a more sustainable future.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this report.
Prepared by: Donesia Gause, City Clerk
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Advisory Committee on Redistricting First Draft Map presentation Draft Maps A, B, C and D including Neighborhood and Current Lines Overlays
Draft A - Minimal Neighborhood Splits
Draft A – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft A – Current Lines Overlay
Draft A2 - Minimal Neighborhood Splits
Draft A2 – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft A2 – Current Lines Overlay
Draft B – Minimum Change
Draft B – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft B – Current Lines Overlay
Draft C – DistrictR 141291
Draft C – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft C – Current Lines Overlay
Draft C2 - Minimal Neighborhood Splits
Draft C2 – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft C2 – Current Lines Overlay
Draft D – BBRA 9.28.22
Draft D – Neighborhoods Overlay
Draft D – Current Lines Overlay
DistrictR Draft Map Submission ID: 145275
Reshape Riverside Redistricting Update ● Page 2