75A - PH - WARD BOUNDARIES - Laserfiche WebLink

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Public Hearing: Amend Council Ward Boundaries October 30, 2018 Page 6 Under the provisions of the Settlement Agreement, staff proposed that the Wards be numbered as reflected above in the versions of the maps under consideration, but can be changed by a Council majority. Once a map is selected, metes and bounds descriptions for each Ward will be appended to the map in Exhibit 2 and sent to the Registrar of Voters Office. Under the City Charter, an ordinance adjusting ward boundaries must be approved by a 2/3 affirmative vote requirement and be adopted no later than 120 days before an election in order to be effective for that election. While the City Charter currently limits ward boundary adjustments as needed to ensure equality of population among the wards, the settlement agreement recognized the need to comply with the California Voting Rights Act, which applies to both general law and charter cities. The City held four Community Meetings throughout the City in addition to the legally noticed Public Hearings and received input including the need for additional demographic data. The consultant provided data requested which has been posted to the City's website for reference. Staff has made the following efforts to encourage the community to be engaged in the process - notices sent via Nixle Alert, Facebook posting, emailed notice to all neighborhood associations, school district, board and commission members, and religious institutions; also published legal notices in various newspapers and translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese and Korean. The information was posted on City's website at http://www.ci.santa-ana.ca.us/coc/ward-re-boundary.asp This proposed re -boundary process is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to Section 15320 — Class 20 (Changes in Organization of Local Agencies) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, since it involves a proposed reorganization of the City Council Wards and does not change the geographical area in which previously existing powers are exercised. STRATEGIC PLAN Approval of this item allows us to meet Goal #5. Community Health, Livability, Engagement & Sustainability, Priority #1, Establish a comprehensive community engagement initiative exhibit to expand access to information and create opportunities for stakeholders to play an active role in discussing public policy and setting priorities. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact associated with this action. Maria D. Huizar Clerk of the Council Exhibits: 1. Current Ward Boundary Map 2. Ordinance 3. Proposed Draft Maps C, C-2, D and D-2 75A-6