By Cathy Higgins
BAY MINETTE, Ala. — The city of Bay Minette is one step closer to redrawing its district lines.
During its regular meeting Monday, the Bay Minette City Council discussed redistricting, which is both a federal and state requirement once U.S. Census results are released every 10 years.
Bay Minette City Attorney Scott Lewis explained that the ideal size of the city’s five districts should consist of 1,644 residents each, with a deviation of plus or minus 2 to 5 percent.
“But we had a deviation of 34 percent,” he said during the council’s work session.
According to his research, Lewis found that District 2 has the highest population, with 1,836 residents — 13 percent above the ideal size. Meanwhile, the remaining districts fall well under that ideal, with District 5 having the lowest population, 1,272 residents — or a 21 percent deficit of the ideal.
The city attorney explained that redrawing those lines has not proven to be easy.
“Every time you adjust one line, it affects the other four districts,” Lewis said.
He pointed out that preserving the core of each of the five voting districts is a priority.
“We want to avoid any incumbency issues,” Lewis said.
He added that the U.S. Department of Justice also takes demographics into consideration.
“They didn’t want to see the packing in of one district,” Lewis said, explaining that over-splitting districts had to also be avoided.
Following Lewis’ presentation, the council agreed to set two community meetings at 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 24 and Tuesday, Nov. 1, on redistricting.
“It won’t be a formal meeting,” Minette Mayor Jamie Tillery said. “It will provide residents with an opportunity to ask questions and look at the maps. I believe we’ll also have a computer set up with Google Earth on it, so people can see right where they are in relation to their district.”
Tillery added that following the community meetings, a public hearing will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 7, on the issue.
