A redistricting committee in Brookhaven is months into a redistricting process that is scheduled to end on December 15, the last date that the town board must approve new borders.
A pivotal September 15 deadline is fast approaching, where the town committee of eight members is required to advance a proposal for the town council’s consideration. Community members are also allowed to propose plans as well. Two such community-proposed plans have been submitted to the town council.
There are also two additional map proposals available for public viewing on the committee’s town website.
“The Brookhaven Redistricting Committee is a multi-partisan, independent commission charged with proposing new council district boundaries under federal, state and local laws while taking into account comments made by the public – either in writing or at their numerous public hearings. They have not forwarded any recommendations to the Town Board to date,” said a spokesperson for the town.
The committee can only recommend a plan with six votes. And on a committee with partisan, regional, and experiential differences, it will be worth watching what plan is proposed. Of course, even after a plan is proposed, the town council can put forward its own plan.
The membership of the committee is as follows:
Rabia Aziz, Coram
George Hoffman, Setauket
Gail Lynch-Bailey, Middle Island
Delilah Bustamante, Manorville
Ali Nazir, Lake Grove
Edward McCarthy, Blue Point
Chad Lennon, Rocky Point
Krystina Sconzo, Mastic Beach
Throughout the summer, there were 12 hearings held by the committee throughout the township. Some committee meetings were more exciting than others, with a few receiving explosive comments from the public and many happening with little community involvement.
The composition of the town council is currently six Republicans and one Democrat. Two districts currently do not meet the population requirements: Districts Two and Six. The Sixth District, which encompasses southeastern Brookhaven, is above the town’s targeted goal of 81,000 residents. The Second District, which encompasses Northeastern Brookhaven, is well under target.
The committee is tasked by the town to keep communities together as much as possible; however, the main goal is to stay in compliance with the population metric, meaning some tough decisions will have to be inevitably made.
Redistricting on a town level is not unlike redistricting on the state level, with politics coming into play, or at the very least, the perception of politics coming into play as the balance of power is largely determined by the outcome.
With the town council holding the final vote, the public’s input seems hardly diminished by the near conclusion of the redistricting committee.
