Committee Opens Mic to Public on Redrawing County Council Districts

Just how county residents are represented on the Anne Arundel County Council could change this summer, and the lines governing Districts 1, 4 and 7 each have reasons to be reconsidered.

Once each decade, the county’s Charter Revision Committee reviews the borders of all seven council districts to ensure they’re as even as possible. After the 2010 U.S. Census, the county’s population increased by 44,691, bringing the total to 534,347.

Committee Chairman Jana Carey said the shift in population affected Districts 1 and 4 the most, with District 1 shrinking and District 4 growing. The inconsistencies place them on the target list for redistricting.

Carey said a simple solution would be to shift the border between the two districts to even them out, but the committee wants to hear other solutions before issuing their recommendation to the county council. Only the county council can make a change.

During a public hearing held Monday night, the committee opened the floor to residents for their input on redistricting, and they got an earful.

Residents of District 7 in the southern end of the county said they haven’t been properly represented for decades. The district encompasses Edgewater, Davidsonville, Crofton and the most southern parts of the county including Churchton, Shady Side, Deale and Lothian. But some on Monday said Crofton’s size has drowned out the voices of the smaller towns since it was redistricted in the 1980s.

The imbalance has disenfranchised some southern county residents from the voting process, said Joan Turek.

“We have not been represented by someone from our area, who truly knows our issues, in a long time,” Turek said. “Please give us back our vote by merging south county with similar rural and shore areas. Correct the wrong done in the early 1980s. If this requires new districts, so be it.”

Committee member Jason Rheinstein said that the board was charged with issuing a seven-member plan to the council as per the rules of the county’s charter. Additional recommendations, such as altering the charter to create an additional district for an eight- or nine- person council, would have to wait until after the redistricting considerations were completed.

Turek’s complaint about Crofton’s influence in District 7 was echoed by Charlotte Smutko, the Vice President of the Lothian Civic Association.

“Crofton is so different than we are. We never get a representative. We can’t elect one, because Crofton always wins, and we’ve been at a disadvantage for that reason,” Smutko said. “One-person, one-vote does not work with us.”

Smutko said she feared for the preservation of other communities if Crofton’s residents are left in charge of representing the district.

Brian Griffiths, of District 3, said he believes the officials need to look through a wider lens at the districts before issuing a recommendation.

“For far too long, the districts put forth by this body have done nothing but make small changes to the map,” he said. “It is time for this commission to take a serious look at full and comprehensive redistricting, and not just pushing districts at the margins.”

Carey concluded the meeting by saying that a second meeting would be held July 25 at 7 p.m. in the county council’s chambers. At that time, the committee would again hear from the public, but they would also begin sharing their ideas for how redistricting would be handled this time.