2007-01-16 - Laserfiche WebLink

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4 Responding to a question from Mr. Lynch, Ms. Mueller said that the current contracts expire on July 1, 2008. Ms. Hamilton asked about the impact of these changes on the McIntire Recycling Center. Ms. Mueller said City residents will only need to take white and brown paper to the Recycling Center. She said in the long term she would like to find a way to do all recycling at curbside. She said Council will need to decide whether to continue supporting the Recycling Center. Mr. Norris thanked Ms. Mueller for the changes. Mr. Lynch said he thinks this is a great step forward and he thanked Ms. Mueller. He said it will be a big help for a lot of people. Dr. Brown also thanked Ms. Mueller and said this will mean less trash for people to have to put out. REPORT : VOTING PRECINCT BOUNDARY CHANGES Ms. Sheri Iachetta, Voter Registrar, said there are currently four large and four small precincts and they are not optimally configured and are out of balance. Mr. Rick Sincere, Electoral Board Member, said that some precincts have great facilities but less users, and others are crowded and have parking problems. He said there are complaints about Tonsler, especially with the parking. Mr. Sincere said boundaries need to be redrawn, new facilities found, or a combination of the two. He said the Electoral Board would like to implement any changes by the February 2008 presidential primary. He noted that the Justice Department must approve any changes in the precincts. Ms. Iachetta said that because her office is small, she asked that Council appoint a committee, to include representatives of the Republican Party, Democratic Party, and the disability community, to study the issue. She said public buildings have been identified, and they need to be visited. Mr. Sincere said that some buildings are good but parking is bad and they may not meet ADA requirements. He said buildings have to be surveyed carefully. He said they want to survey private facilities as well. Mr. Lynch said he would like more specific data on what problems are happening and where, and a listing of the most egregious problems. He said he would prefer to see if there is a way to solve those problems first before appointing a committee. Mr. Taliaferro said some precincts are underutilized and we may need to redraw lines. Dr. Brown asked if it matters that some precincts are large or small, and Ms. Iachetta said it does not matter since we have an at large voting system. Ms. Hamilton asked if the need for redistricting is being driven by new development, and Ms. Iachetta said yes, especially at Tonsler and Jefferson Park Avenue. Mr. Norris said he has no problem appointing a committee, but agrees with Mr. Lynch that we should first look a the buildings, and suggested that a committee look at that first. Dr. Brown said he would also ask the committee to look at making sure we do not lose the neighborhood focus in areas where it is important (i.e. pedestrian, bus access). Dr. Brown suggested that the issue be reconsidered at the next meeting.