Nov. 21, 2012 — The Carter County Reapportionment Commission last week finalized a magisterial redistricting plan to present to Fiscal Court.
The Commission, comprised of Walton (Corky) Clevenger, Guy Underwood and MaLenda Haynes met four times to review possible plans for reapportionment in order to comply with the 2010 census.
The Commission earlier chose to present three plans to the Fiscal Court but during Friday's meeting only one plan was chosen to move forward.
The plan was made within five minutes of the meeting's start. However, Judge-Executive Charles Wallace had questions for the Commission that led to an hour-long meeting.
“I have had a lot of complaints about Alpha Hall and Oakland. Can they be switched back?” Wallace asked. “You can give us a plan, but you can't recommend anything. We can amend that if we want to.”
“Judge, we can't go by complaints. We have to go by the numbers,” Clevenger said. “We have to do what the circuit judge told us to do.”
The Commission was formed in response to a court order entered July 30 by Greenup Circuit Judge Robert B. Conley, stating that all parties involved in the case had agreed that the Fiscal Court had failed to comply with statutory requirements regarding apportionment in the fall of 2011.
The Commission called FIVCO to check into Wallace's inquiry but it seemed that a switch would be impossible.
The plan would make the population of each district between 5,220 and 5,700, which perfectly aligns the districts into the suggested population variance of five percent in either direction.
If the Commission sticks to last Friday’s now tentative decision, only six precincts would move to a new magisterial district if the plan is accepted by the Fiscal Court.
District 1 would lose Buffalo and Oakland but gain Alpha Hall. District 2 stands to lose East Grayson and Stovall but gain Oakland. District 3 would lose Alpha Hall, moving to District 1, and Pleasant Hill, going to District 4.
If approved, District 1 will be made up of Iron Hill, Courthouse, Alpha Hall and Gregoryville. District 2 will consist of Oakland, North and South Rush, and North and South Midland Trail.
District 3 will be made up of Stovall, East Grayson/ Stinson, Hitchins, Denton, and Willard. District 4 will be Pleasant Hill, Grahn, Eagle Hill, Pleasant Valley, Clark Hill, Cedar Grove, and Soldier.
District 5 will be Upper Tygart, Brickyard, Olive Hill Courthouse, Smokey Valley and Buffalo.
The Commission also took future population changes into consideration.
According to 2010 census data, precincts on the west side of the county were the slowest growing while Oakland, South Midland Trail, North Midland Trail and East Grayson/ Stinson were the fastest growing.
