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The County’s Independent Redistricting Commission, charged with recommending a plan to reapportion County legislative districts, tonight approved a slightly revised redistricting plan to recommend to the County Legislature.

The plan, recommended by a unanimous vote of the Commission, would minimize the number of added election districts that would be required to accommodate four County legislative districts and five City wards within the City of Ithaca.  Last week, Ithaca’s Common Council voted to support an arrangement that keeps the number of City wards at five, instead of reducing the number to four.

The latest recommendation for County legislative districts keeps the number of County districts within the City at four, but adjusts the Commission’s initial proposal (known as “14C – Version 3”) to reduce the number of added election districts that would be required to four—from as many as nine in earlier versions.  The revised proposal shifts a block in the Court/Farm Street area from District 5 to District 4 and a block of West Avenue, where some of the Cornell University’s West Campus dorms are located, from District 4 to District 5.

County Elections Commissioners expressed support for the recommended plan, Democratic Commissioner Steve DeWitt remarking that the plan would reduce the number of election districts within the City below the current level.

The revised recommendation will be presented to the Legislature tomorrow night, when the Legislature is scheduled to consider whether to accept the Commission’s report and direct staff to draft a proposed Local Law to put to public hearing.

The Commission tonight also reaffirmed its support of reducing the County Legislature by one, to 14 members.  Members also decided to add two other suggestions to the Commission’s report—that the Legislature consider formally preserving by law the independent approach to redistricting for future years, and that timetables for City and County redistricting efforts be better coordinated in future years.

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