12-04-2017 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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WS – Item 14 WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT Work Session Item No. 14 Date: December 4, 2017 To: City Council From: Julie Bartell Re: Election Polling Places Background The city has been informed by Anoka County that state legislative changes approved in 2017 (M.S. 204B.16, subd. 1) require that the city establish its 2018 election polling locations prior to December 31, 2017. Previously polling locations could be changed up to 90 days before the election. Therefore, staff will be asking the council to approve a resolution designating polling locations at the December 11th council meeting. Review of Considerations As background for taking this action, and in recognition of recent and past council interest in changing or adding polling places, staff is providing a review of current information and future options. What drives the need to make a change? - The best reason to consider a change in polling locations is to provide better service to the City’s voters. This would typically mean improving proximity to their residences and keeping precinct size manageable to avoid long waits and parking issues. As indicated on the attached map, some residents have a substantial drive to their polling place. To address this, adding polling locations such as Fire Station No. 2 has been discussed. A chart is also attached indicating the number of voters per precinct (the recommendation is to keep this under 1,500). Planning for the future – A secondary reason to make changes is to plan for what lies ahead in terms of population growth and other factors that could impact voting, such as the following: - The number of registered voters in the City increased moderately by 472 voters (3.8%) in the past year; - Additional housing units are expected to be developed in the next few years;