A public hearing will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15 by the Pierce County Board to gather public comment on the tentative map for county and municipal redistricting. This process is completed every 10 years after the U.S. Census is conducted.

The Redistricting Committee approved Version 2 of the map, which contained minor modifications to district boundaries, at its Sept. 2 meeting.

The first modification takes place in districts 8 and 12 in the town of Martell, said GIS Specialist Kevin Etherton. Whereas the county traditionally has followed school district boundary lines in these districts, the actual Census Bureau boundaries followed parcel lines (though they were trying to follow school district boundary lines.) This resulted in less than 30 people being affected, but the committee chose to follow school district lines instead of the parcel lines. This will keep things less confusing for election workers and voters, so they don’t have to deal with multiple ballot versions.

“That is part of our goal, to make these districts as simply as we can,” said County Clerk Jamie Feuerhelm. “So we don’ have to create an additional ballot for 30 people.”

The second modification concerns districts 2 and 5. The City of River Falls indicated it will be annexing an area in the township later this year from District 2 into District 5, so the city requested the district lines follow that proposed annexation, which total 36 acres. This allows the city to plan ahead for its ward boundaries in its aldermanic districts. Four people currently live in the affected area, though more will live there once the property is developed.

County Administrator Jason Matthys said he felt this request was reasonable to accommodate for the city’s planning purposes, otherwise it could have caused two to three aldermanic splits once that area is annexed.

At a recent Redistricting Committee meeting, Etherton said Census data indicated Pierce County’s population increased by 2.9 percent, or 1,193 people, since the 2010 Census. The committee agreed the nominal growth supported keeping the number of supervisory districts at 17.

The committee voted unanimously to forward the tentative map to the Finance & Personnel Committee for consideration. A copy of the tentative plan and map can be viewed or obtained at the County Clerk’s Office in the Pierce County Courthouse or online at www.co.pierce.wi.us

Map courtesy of Redistricting Committee

Map courtesy of Redistricting Committee

Map courtesy of Redistricting Committee

The brown lines show the U.S. Census Bureau’s district lines, which follow parcel lines. The thicker red lines show the county’s lines, which follow school district boundaries in districts 8 and 12.

The thicker red line shows the map modification made for supervisory districts 2 and 5 per the City of River Falls’ request. The boundary was changed due to a pending annexation by the city of 36 acres. This change affects four people who currently live within the boundaries.