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| This map was presented at a recent workshop by District 2 School Board member Paul Fetsko. It is an interesting proposal. While I think it needs a few revisions and I'll bring these ideas on November 2nd---if he is set on it I could live with it. It appears D1 School Board member Kevin Adams could support this as well. |
Eight days ago, a workshop was held at the School District offices on Texar Drive.
There were multiple presentations and issues to be discussed.
Toward the end of the meeting, the board discussed the redistricting process and specifically what the District 2 Board Member thought would be some good boundaries for the new District 2 School Board District.
Upon seeing what he proposed---I am in general agreement. I could certainly live with what Paul has put forward for the reasons he quite eloquently enunciated in the meeting (2:14 minute of this video) and listening to his rationale--his plan is #3 of the ones Chariman Slayton mentions leading into the item with Bender's idea being #1, Bergosh/Adams plan being #2----------- It would be hard for anyone to believe politics played any role whatsoever in the way he has imagined the lines going forward for the next ten years.
I will work with Paul toward making a few modifications/tweaks if he will countenance it--as I believe Sorrento/Bauer/Gulf Beach highway east of what he's proposed needs to stay in D2--and seveal census blocks he has in his northern part of his proposal should revert back to D1. But I think somewhere between what he's proposed and what I proposed on Oct. 5th will be the eventual final. That's my sense of it. My proposed compromise between what we proposed at the Oct. 5th meeting and what Paul Fetsko proposed on October 14th at the school board workshop, is below.
Now--the school board absolutely has the ability to create their own lines independently of the County Commissioners. And vice versa.
But to do this puts an inordinate amount of work on the Supervisor of Elections staff and creates significant voter confusion. It is for this reason that one of my firm stands will be that the D1 County Commission lines, at least and wherever they end up, will mirror the D1 School Board lines. I believe my counterpart on the School Board, Kevin Adams, believes this to be true as well. What other districts do will obviously be up to these individual office holders.
We'll see what happens November 2nd.
(And for everyone's full disclosure--I've stated from the start that I did not favor rushing this process, which is now precisely what we're doing. From day 1 I stated we should wait until 2023 and do it right because of COVID-19 and all the resultant data delays, etc. But everyone wants to rush it, so here we are..........)
