Pierce County Districting Committee Approves Final Map

Press release from the Pierce County Government:

December 17, 2021

The adopted map adjusted the boundaries to accommodate growth over the last 10 years, as identified by the 2020 Census. The Pierce County Charter stipulates that the seven council districts must have approximately the same number of residents so that people are equally represented by an elected council member.

“The final adopted map keeps communities and neighborhoods together and maintains compact and contiguous districts that ensure fair representation to Pierce County residents,” said Committee Chairman Frank Cuthbertson.

The new population for Pierce County is 921,130, according to the 2020 Census. Equally distributed, that would place 131,590 people in each council district. The Districting Committee requested proposed districts with a variance of 2% or less, which was largely achieved in the adopted map.

Notable boundary changes include the Graham area falling between districts 1 and 3 due to significant growth over the last 10 years. Previously it was encompassed entirely in District 3.

District 5 expanded to the north, taking in the Tacoma Tideflats, city of Fife, Dash Point and Brown’s Point, while District 4 saw its boundary shift to the west and District 2 saw its boundary shift east. These changes reduced the number of districts that include the city of Tacoma from four to three. District 6 now includes McNeil Island, which was previously located in District 7.

Population breakdown by district:

Due to delays in the release of census data the Districting Committee had to work quickly to select a Districting Master, review draft maps and ultimately approve the final map – all before the end of this year.

“I am proud of the committee’s work under the abbreviated timeline and the willingness of members to work together to find commonalities,” Cuthbertson said. “I want to thank the appointed members who volunteered their time to make sure fair, equitable boundaries were approved. I also want to thank the public for its participation in this process.”

This press release was produced by the Pierce County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.