In a meeting of the Finance and Government Committee, District 8 councilman Chris Herndon presented the concept, saying Denver has had 11 district seats for decades.
DENVER — Adding two extra seats to Denver’s City Council is among the proposals being mulled as city leaders consider how to redraw political lines after population growth documented in the 2020 Census.
The proposal for new seats, which would bring the council to 15 members, came as the panel debated alternatives, including converting the body’s two at-large seats to council districts representing a slice of the city and increasing the office budgets of council members to account for a growing population.
Denver’s 2022 redistricting process will officially begin in September with the release of the new Census data. Councilman Chris Herndon said the city can expect the data to show record-breaking district population sizes.
“If numbers are trending, we’re going to have the largest council districts we’ve ever had,” Herndon said. “As we are going to start moving forward with redistricting, do we need to have a conversation about council district size?”
The discussions Tuesday were informal, with no official proposals on the table. Any significant change to the council’s structure would require voter approval to modify the city charter. To reach the November ballot would mean deciding on a change in the next seven weeks, before election deadlines.
>9NEWS readers can view the full article at Denver Gazette.
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