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Contacts:
Janice Auger Rasmussen
Chair, Salt Lake County Redistricting Commission
(801) 581-8032
janiceras@comcast.net
Scott Konopasek
Director, Salt Lake County Elections
(801) 468-3470 (O) (801) 657-0784 (M)
skonopasek@slco.org
Salt Lake County Redistricting Commission
Hosts Open House for Public to Review and Discuss Redistricting Proposals
SALT LAKE COUNTY, UT (July 26, 2011) – The Independent Salt Lake County Redistricting Commission is hosting an open house on July 28th for the public to review County Council and school district redistricting proposals and meet with the Commission members. The open house follows the Commission’s regular meeting and will be held in the North Building Atrium of the County Government Center from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
“We want the public to have a part in this process, so we are inviting them in to review the maps, ask questions and vote on their most preferred proposal,” said Janice Auger Rasmussen, chair of the Salt Lake County Redistricting Commission.
The Commission has developed three distinct proposals for county council districts. The first proposal follows the initial direction given in the county redistricting ordinance to make as few boundary changes as possible, keep incumbents in their current district and to evenly distribute the population. The second proposal aims to preserve Communities of Interest (Cities, Townships and Community Councils) while balancing the population. The third proposal attempts to balance the population and distribute the six council districts along a north south axis, creating compact districts along the east side and west side respectively.
The Commission is also charged with proposing new school board member district boundaries for the Jordan, Granite, and Canyons school districts.
The public may participate in the process by using the same on-line mapping tools being used by the Commission and staff to develop their own proposals and analyze the Commission’s proposals.
The Salt Lake County Clerk purchased a web-based redistricting application from ESRI to support the development of the Commission’s proposals. The Clerk’s office provides administrative, technical and clerical support to the Commission. The public may access this application and set up a personal account at https://slco-redistricting.esri.com/ On-line help and tutorials are available to learn how to use the tool. The public is encouraged to present their resulting recommendations and analysis to the Commission at its public meetings. The Commission will present final recommendations to the County Council at the end of August.
Members of the news media and the public are welcome and encouraged to attend the Commission meetings. The meeting schedule, agendas and other information about the Commission can be found on the county’s website at this address: http://www.slco.org/html/redistcommission.html
Next Meeting: 4:00 pm Thursday, July 28, 2011
Salt Lake County Government Center
2001 South State Street
North Building, Room N2003
Salt Lake City, UT 84190
Public Open House: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Thursday, July 28, 2011
North Building Atrium
INFORMATION:
Salt Lake County voting district boundaries are realigned every 10 years, and
will be redrawn for the 2012 election. The Salt Lake County Council assembled a
bi-partisan Redistricting Commission to determine the new district boundaries
using population statistics from the 2010 Census.
Appointed Redistricting Commissioners are:
- Dennis Alexander, Democrat
- Cort Ashton, Republican
- Tim Chambless, Democrat
- Julio Garcia, Independent
- Christopher Katis, Democrat
- Janice Auger Rasmussen, Republican
- Barbara Thomas, Republican
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