County Redistricting Plan Could Pass Next Week

No plan was voted on this week in a county redistricting process that will change the boundaries for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and could possibly put Altadena, Montrose and La Crescenta in a new electoral district.

Scenarios that are being evaluated by the county's Boundary Review Committee include moving Altadena, Montrose and La Crescenta into the district of current East Los Angeles representative Gloria Molina; keeping the areas under the current representative, Michael Antonovich; or even splitting Altadena into both districts (a map of that plan can be viewed at right).

The committee met on Wednesday, which was the first date it could have voted on a final plan.  No vote was held, according to committee member Allan Hoffenblum, but the committee will meet next Monday and Wednesday and it is possible the committee could vote at either meeting, he said.

Hoffenblum, who is a longtime GOP political consultant, was appointed to the committee by Antonovich, along with San Marino Councilman Richard Sun.  The full committee is made up of 10 members, two appointed by each of the five county supervisors.  The committee's ultimate plan will be voted on by the Board of Supervisors, likely some time this summer.  For more on the committee .

Altadena Feedback

While Hoffenblum declined to discuss specific plans that the committee might vote on, or whether it is likely that Altadena could switch districts or be split, he said he has recently received signficiant commuications from Altadena residents on the issues.

"We certainly got the message that Altadena wants to be all in one district," Hoffenblum said.

The Maps

The county's process for redistricting involves an unusual kind of public participation: Any member of the public was allowed to submit a proposed redistricting plan up to June 15.  In the end, 17 of the plans were evaluated as complying with the legal guidelines for redistricting.

Some of those maps were submitted by expected sources: recognized nonprofits and professors.  But there were also some unusual contributions, including one from a Utah resident. The full list of maps can be found on the committee's website.

Sun, Antonovich's other appointment to the committee, said that the committee is not bound to simply select one of the plans and can exercise its judgment in making its own plan or adapting one so it works best for the county.

Hoffenblum, who has been part of the county's redistricting committee three times prior, says this is the first time the county has seen such a significant level of participation.

"I think 10 years ago we had something like three plans submitted," Hoffenblum said.

Why Changes are Necessary

Sun noted that the reason that some plans dropped Altadena from Antonovich's district is that his district has gained population since 2000, which means some town is going to have to be moved into another district.

Sun said that no matter which towns are moved, his preference is that no town gets divided.

"My personal opinion is that I don't like to see a city, or any unincorporated area, split," Sun said.