COLORADO SPRINGS — The City of Colorado Springs is seeking input from residents about a proposed redistricting plan. The city’s six City Council Districts are reassessed and boundaries are redrawn every four years based on population changes.
Colorado Springs has grown by about 20,000 people over the past four years, according to Colorado Springs City Clerk Sarah Johnson.
"If the population didn't grow as much in the last four years, and the districts were in the realm of acceptable, then you wouldn't change it. However, at least in my time here, we have always had to do some tweaking because of population shifts," Johnson said.
The purpose of this redistricting is to make sure that each City Council District has a roughly equal population, she said.
"The positive effects is just equalizing those population numbers so there's not one counsil memeber that's representing 90,000 people and one that's representing 50,000 people. It evens out," Johnson said.
The District Process Advisory Committee has put together three different proposals to explore what changes could be made in certain districts.
The first public meeting to generate conversation surrounding redistricting will be held Friday, September 6, for Council District 6, at 5:30 p.m. It’s located at Fire Station 20 at 6755 Rangewood Drive.
MORE | See full list of District meetings location and times
Johnson stresses the importance of community feedback and attendance at the public meetings to make sure neighbors understand the plans for their community.
“It will not affect any of the taxes that you’ll pay. This just simply determines who your local representative is—whether it’s Council Member A or Council Member B,” Johnson said. “It does not change your children’s school district or affect it in any way. It’s solely about who represents your area on the City Council.”
MORE |Survey for Colorado Springs redistricting proposal
Residents of Colorado Springs have multiple avenues to share their views about the redistricting proposal. You can complete an online survey, or send an email, postal mail, or make a call to the City Clerk.
A preliminary report and map will be released in October after a review of citizen comments, according to the city's website.
The City Clerk will prepare the final City Council district report for the district boundaries no earlier than November 4 and no later than December 2, the website says.
The redistricting plan will be finalized before next year’s General Municipal Election on April 1, 2025, according to the city.
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