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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHandouts_Charter Review_10/13/2021The issue of geographical representation on the village council has been an issue since the early 1960's. A referendum was held in 1964 stating: "Should the Village of Tequesta be divided into two (2) wards divided by the North Fork of the Loxahatchee River, the Village Council to be composed of two (2) members residing in each ward and a fifth member to reside in either ward and to serve as Mayor; All Candidates to be elected by the Electors at large" The results of the 1 /21 /64 referendum were 105 for and 11 against. However, at the 8/17/1971 Village Council meeting with a 4-1 vote, the Council put to the voters a referendum to rescind and return to 5 "at large seats." The minutes do not reflect the reasoning You have read the minutes of the 7/9/2001 Charter Review Board which reflect discussion regarding many issues including voting districts and, although they saw problems with "there was over representation on the Village Council from the Country Club which had been discussed many times..." their "non decision" ended by kicking the can down the road to us. Since this is a recurring issue in the village, it is important that this committee rise to the challenge set down by the 2001 Charter Committee and explore if voting districts might be an option for Tequesta. History When you look at the zoning map, there seems to be three distinct areas of the village: Country Club (west of the river) the Seabrook Corridor and Jupiter Island. Although each of these areas show some demographic similarities, there are differences in their land use and the way each area was developed in the 1950-70's: • In the 1950's, Charles Martyn developed Country Club building single family houses and was the first to complete a subdivision the village. • On the east side of the river (Seabrook area) various developers were developing plots of land with various configurations (Tequesta Gardens Condos; single family homes (Ridgewood, Tequesta Pines), business malls and complexes were also developing (Gallery Square North/ South) This area also housed public buildings (Seabrook fire Station; North County Ambulance, the existing water plant and the original sewage plant) • In the 1950's Jupiter Island properties were being developed with condominiums and some of them came into the village. I was curious as to what a precinct system might approximately look like for the Village which may serve as a starting point of discussion. Methodology Districts are established by census numbers; however, these numbers are not broken down by street name, I obtained a list from the PBC Elections of registered voters in the Village. This spreadsheet listed the names and addresses of each voter. The number provided by the Election Office was of course less than the Census number because it excluded non registered adults and children. Therefore, this presentation seeks only to demonstrate possible divisions in a district/precinct/ward system. The number I used was approximately 5000. I sorted the data by street name and then used Google and my zoning map to locate streets in the village. I divided the village by streets into the three areas. Obviously, Jupiter Island has the lowest voter count (about 10%) and the Seabrook Corridor has the highest. Therefore, some areas west of US #1 would have to be added to Jupiter Island to make up their third. Three district divide: (approximately 2000 residents in each district; 2 open seats) The main division is Seabrook Rd.and Village Blvd. West of Fork Country Club East of US 1 Jupiter Island US 1 & Villages Lighthouse Seabrook Four District divide: (approximately 1500 in each district — one open seat) The main division is Seabrook Road and Village Blvd. This divides more neighborhoods and areas. West of Fork Country Club East of US 1 Jupiter Island Teq Trace Teq Oaks East of Seabrook West of Seabrook The most optimum option would be three districts and two open/at large seats. This is the most contiguous The "at large" seats can be just that; however, they could also be designated one as "mayor" and one as "vice mayor" running in separate years. Since these positions have no additional duties except to preside at meetings and sign documents; however, the titles may serve as incentive for people to pursue these seats. Elections would be held in a two year on, one year off cycle which would save the Village the third election year cost.