A group of citizens who have expressed concerns about the city of Chattanooga’s redistricting process said they hope that a compromise can be reached before the City Council adopts a redistricting ordinance on second and final reading on Tuesday afternoon.
Theresa Turner, co-chair of the Hamilton County Voters’ Coalition, said that a group of individuals who had asked that the entire process start over now propose a much-abbreviated approach to learn about how the City decided to reapportion the population based on the 2020 census.
She said: “In the spirit of compromise and in recognition of the public process that the Council has followed since March 1st, we respectfully request that Council hold a strategic planning meeting devoted to bringing the public up to speed on what factors the city considered when moving people from one district to another.
“We would like to hear a brief presentation by the City Attorney on legal considerations and to be educated by Councilors and staff on what options were considered in drawing the proposed lines for each district and what changes have been made to the map since March 1.
“We see this as an educational and explanatory public meeting and recognize that Council is not required to allow comments from members of the public who are present.
“Because the redistricting ordinance is on the Council agenda for final passage tomorrow afternoon, we hope that a Councilor will suggest this approach and make a motion to defer adoption of the ordinance until the strategic planning meeting can be held in May or June.”
She noted that the Council has until 2024 to complete the redistricting process for the next citywide election in 2025.