Saltarelli Suggests Redrawing County Supervisors’ Districts

Calling current boundaries confusing and “ridiculous,” Supervisor Don Saltarelli wants to redraw all five supervisorial districts later this year under a plan that he says will make county government more responsive to voters.

Though redistricting usually occurs once every 10 years following the U.S. Census, Saltarelli said the impending departure of two county supervisors--himself and Supervisors Chairman Roger R. Stanton--provides an rare opportunity for the board to craft new boundaries in an environment free of the political maneuvering that often accompanies reapportionment.

Another supervisor, William G. Steiner, has said in the past that he will not seek reelection when his terms expire in 1998, which means that a majority of the Board of Supervisors could reevaluate current boundaries without concern for their political futures.

“What’s happened in the past is that board members have looked at who their potential opponents are going to be and made [boundary] changes that put opponents in different districts,” Saltarelli said Tuesday. “That’s not the right way to do it. There is no reason to have these crazy lines that divide cities. It can be done in a more logical way.”

Saltarelli’s proposal has generated some interest among South County officials, who often complain that they have little voice in county affairs. But other supervisors and officials elsewhere questioned the logic of redrawing boundaries before new census data area compiled, and while the county struggles to recover from its 18-month bankruptcy.

“Reapportionment can be very confrontational,” said Supervisor Marian Bergeson. “I think there is a disadvantage to diverting our attention away from [bankruptcy] recovery so we can deal with this.”

Supervisor Jim Silva said he would be willing to discuss new district boundaries at some point, but agreed with Bergeson that now is the wrong time.

“We already have a full plate,” Silva said. “We are [just] out of bankruptcy, and we are focusing on government restructuring. . . . In August, we have the new budget.”

Under state election codes, the county is permitted to redraw district boundaries at any time based on census numbers or population data compiled by the county planning department and state finance department.

But even if supervisors approve a reapportionment plan this year, they must repeat the process after 2000, because state law requires that boundaries be amended to reflect each census, said Jim Meade, assistant county counsel.

Saltarelli and his staff are preparing a redistricting proposal that he plans to present to each of the supervisors on an individual basis and eventually bring before the full board for a vote.

While the exact boundaries have not been finalized, Saltarelli said his plan is meant in part to address concerns by South County residents who don’t feel they have sufficient political clout. Saltarelli and Bergeson both represent the area, but neither lives south of the El Toro Y.

Saltarelli said he is especially dissatisfied with the configuration of his own District 3, which stretches from La Habra, Fullerton and Yorba Linda south through Lake Forest and Mission Viejo.

“My district runs from the bottom of South County to the top of North County,” he said, adding that northern voters generally favor construction of a commercial airport at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, while southern voters oppose it. “Whatever the supervisor does upsets some people in this district.”

Lake Forest Councilwoman Helen Wilson, who made a unsuccessful bid in March to fill Saltarelli’s seat when he vacates it, agreed that District 3 needs to be redrawn.

“It shouldn’t take an hour to drive from one corner of the district to another,” Wilson said. “It’s difficult for anyone to represent District 3 effectively.”

While Bergeson, Silva and others agreed that redistricting should eventually be considered, they said it makes little sense to pursue the issue now with two new supervisors set to be elected in November from within the current boundaries.

Changing district lines now might actually hurt South County voters, Bergeson said, because both District 3 candidates live in North County and might not be as responsive to the needs of southern constituents who would change districts at the next election.

“The real solution is to expand the board so attention can get given narrower bases . . . and more people feel represented,” she said.

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Lines in the Land

County Supervisor Don Saltarelli is developing a plan to redraw supervisorial districts this year, saying the current boundaries divide cities and encompass far-flung communities with little in common. Boundaries are usually redrawn every 10 years based on census data. Here are the current boundaries and supervisors:

District 1: Roger R. Stanton

District 2: Jim Silva

District 3: Don Saltarelli

District 4: William G. Steiner

District 5: Marian Bergeson