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<br />6) The Committee's proposal for redrawn city council districts was narrowly tailored to
<br />avoid retrogression to the greatest extent possible in the position of racial minorities and
<br />language minorities as defined in the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended, with
<br />respect to their effective exercise of the electoral franchise.
<br />Set out below is a brief description of each of the proposed single-member districts,
<br />including information as to total population, breakdown of the population in terms of
<br />race, boundary lines forming the district, and its general character based on zoning
<br />classifications, housing, and industry. Based on the mandate of Ordinance 2001-2502,
<br />and as defined immediately above, each existing district within the city was
<br />reconfigured so as to fully comply with the criteria and standards as set out by Section
<br />5, of the Voting Rights Act, 42 U.S.C., §1973c, and in each case, all guidelines and
<br />governing standards were fully satisfied.
<br />District 1
<br />District 1, under the proposed boundary lines, contains a population of 5,569, a
<br />variance of +5% from the ideal population of 5313 for the 6 reconfigured districts.
<br />District 1 generally encompasses what was until April 10, 1980 the incorporated
<br />municipality of Lomax. On that date, it was annexed by the City of La Porte. District 1 is
<br />currently represented by Councilperson Guy Sutherland.
<br />The ethnic composition of District 1 is as follows: Hispanic 1,192, White 4,088, Black
<br />168, Asian 48, American Indian 23, Pacific Islander 2, Other 48.
<br />District 1, as proposed, is bound by State Highway 225 on the north, Sens Road on the
<br />east, the north line of the La Porte Municipal Airport, Glenvalley Drive, Big Island
<br />Slough, north from Glennvalley to the north boundary line of the Creekmont Subdivision
<br />to Underwood Road then north to State Highway 225.
<br />District 1 is generally made up of homes located on property one half acre to ten acres
<br />in size, with many residents utilizing property for agricultural and farming purposes. Two
<br />La Porte Independent District schools are located in the district, Lomaz Elementry and
<br />Lomax Junior High School. There are three churches, a rodeo arena, and a city park
<br />with soccer fields, swimming pool, and walking trails.
<br />District 2
<br />District 2, under the proposed boundary lines, contains a population of 5,306, a
<br />variance of 0% from the ideal population of 5313 for the 6 reconfigured districts. District
<br />2 will be comprised of 2 subdivisions, Spenwick and Brookglen. The area constituting
<br />the bulk of District 2 was annexed by the City of La Porte on November 22, 1983.
<br />District 2 is represented by Councilperson Chuck Engelken.
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