By Garrett Harr
Peninsula Daily News
PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County’s commissioner districts for the next decade closely align with the present plan with some minor changes.
Commissioners unanimously approved Alternative Plan One on Monday at their final meeting of 2021.
“The vast support of public input has been in support of Alternative Plan One,” said Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour.
It was closer to the preexisting plan than the other two options that were presented at the hearing, but it still contains some alterations.
The plan affects the districts for voting for the three county commissioners and the three Port of Port Townsend commissioners.
The boundary between Districts 1, in Port Townsend, and 2, which stretches into the southern portion of the county, is realigned to follow the census block along Middle Point Road, which would split Precinct 104.
The only other change was the boundary between Districts 2 and 3, which contains the rest of the county, including West Jefferson County, which is re-aligned to follow Chimacum Creek. That would split precinct 308.
Under the new map, populations are 10,989 in District 1, 11,006 in District 2 and 10,982 in District 3, given the April 2020 U.S. Census count of 32,977 in the county.
“I want to thank you all for what tremendous county service you folks provide for us,” said resident George Yount, the only member of the public who commented.
Every 10 years, district maps are redrawn based on new U.S. Census data.
This time, five plans were presented originally.
The hearings and plans took a lot of time and hard work, but it was worth it to Commissioner Greg Botherton.
The dedication of the commissioners and everyone else involved, including the public, made sure this was the best possible outcome, he said.
“Continuity is important and the fewer surprises we throw on the voters, the better for our transparency of government,” he said.
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Garrett Harr can be reached at garrett.harr@ soundpublishing.com.
