Community Redistricting Meeting Scheduled for Thursday

Pasadena residents will have a chance to learn more about their city during a virtual community redistricting meeting at 4 p.m. Thursday

“Your attendance is vital as we learn how to draw maps of interest and the importance of redistricting. We must be at the table on the front end to address our issues and concerns,” according to a flyer on the event.

The meeting is being held by First AME Church, the Pasadena NAACP, the League of Women Voters Pasadena Area, New Revelations Baptist Church, AME Zion Church, Calvary CME Church, and City Councilman John Kennedy.

According to the circular, participation could impact the number of cannabis dispensaries that would be allowed per council district and a social equity program, police oversight and public safety issues, affordable housing, job creation, school board elections, and environmental and transportation issues.

Following every 10-year census count, the city utilizes that information to examine the people residing in existing City Council district boundaries to account for changes in population.

Pasadena first drew district lines in 1980, with the city’s election system being changed from at-large citywide runoffs to district-only elections.

This paved the way for the election of minority candidates and a greater emphasis on neighborhood concerns.

In the 10-year period between 1980 and 1990, the city’s population increased by 11%, becoming more racially and ethnically diverse.

The biggest impact of redistricting occurred almost 30 years ago, when the council created a new district — which is now District 5 — in the hopes of creating more opportunities for growing numbers of Latino residents to participate in the political process.

The creation of the new district eventually led to Mayor Victor Gordo’s election. Gordo served as a field representative for Councilman Bill Crowfoot, the first District 5 representative, and won the seat after Crowfoot retired.

In 2012, the City Council voted 6-1 to shift the districts slightly, resulting in the exchange of about 1,392 people from one district to another.

The process ensures the proper balance of populations between all districts. With the completion of the 2020 Census, the council formed a task force to review changes in populations and demographics in the city and recommend a plan to accommodate those changes.