County Redistricting Public Hearing Tonight

Prince William County supervisors tonight will hear from the public regarding a new redistricting map that either keeps seven districts or creates an eighth district in the middle of the eastern border.

If the eighth district map option is chosen in the board’s special redistricting meeting on April 18, it will not greatly affect the Woodbridge district. But, if the seventh district map option is adopted, the district will have some big changes.

“The seventh district breaks up four precincts and creates two new ones,” said Woodbridge District Supervisor Frank J. Principi in an interview on Monday. “I lose , Pope John Paul the Catholic High School, Harbor Station and the .”

Principi said that the eighth district plan would be “status quo” as current precincts would not be broken up and no new ones would be created – which in turn saves money.

The one change in the eighth district plan is that the precinct would be cut off, but Principi anticipates that precinct would return to the Woodbridge district before the redistricting process is complete.  

Supervisors tonight present two plans to the public. One plan retains the seven voting districts in the county and the second plan creates a new, eighth district around the city of Manassas on the county's eastern border between the Gainesville and Coles districts. The Brenstville and Gainesville districts, which grew the most of all districts, will have to shrink. 

The Coles and Occoquan districts will have to grow, and the Coles District could see a dramatic shift. According to population growth numbers, the Brentsville District must shrink by almost 20,000 people and the Gainesville District must shrink by about 16,000. The rest of the districts would need to expand, with Occoquan gaining about 14,000.

Since the board has a little under two full weeks to make a decision on what play they will adopt, a lot of work will come between the public hearing tonight and the adoption.

Principi said that the board wants to hear from the public before they make a decision and that they know there may be some confusion in the process.

The redistricting process got off to a shaky start in Prince William County when the Electoral Board provided the Board of County Supervisors with an incorrect time line. Instead of thinking they had until May to complete the redistricting process, the Electoral Board informed supervisors on March 23 that they must finish the process by April 19. The result is county staff, supervisors and residents lose about a month in the planning and review process.

"The is greatly embarrassed for putting the Board in this situation, but unfortunately the time requirements cannot be changed. There is barely enough time to complete the redistricting work and to get ballots to our soldiers in time to meet our 45 day requirement if adoption is moved up to April 19," states a letter the Electoral Board sent to county officials. "The Electoral Board regrets the situation and now has to ask you for help."

Representatives from the Electoral Board will be at the evening meeting tonight. 

The primary is Aug. 23 and absentee ballots for this primary must be mailed no later than July 8, which means the Justice Department will complete its 60-day review period on June 18. This gives the Electoral Board 20 days to review the plans, instead of no days under the mistake time line it sent to supervisors earlier.

Critics of the county's process are saying that the Map 7 alternative has so many holes that it basically forces residents to choose the Map 8 alternative that requires a new district, and more money.

The public hearing for redistricting will be during the Board of County Supervisors’ evening meeting at 7:30 p.m. in the Board Chambers at 1 County Complex Ct in Woodbridge. E-mail comments can be sent to redistricting@pwcgov.org.