Local residents will have the opportunity to see proposed redistricting plans for Columbus City Council on Monday night.
An informational meeting will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. at Columbus City Hall in the Cal Brand Meeting Room. There will be a presentation of the proposed district maps at 5:15 p.m., followed by a question and answer session.
City council district changes, when approved, will go into effect starting in 2024. Council members may be in attendance at Monday’s meeting, but no official business will take place at that time.
“As you may recall, every 10 years the city has to review the city council districts to make sure that they’re adequately balanced with respect to population,” said Mayor Jim Lienhoop at a recent council meeting.
Additionally, the creation of a new, sixth district, is included in the redistricting proposal, as the council recently voted to adopt “second class” status for the city of Columbus.
The transition entails a number of changes to city structure. One of the most notable is the addition of two new city council members.
Indiana’s second class cities each have a legislative body made up of nine members — six members representing six districts and three at-large members. Columbus City Council is now made up of five district representatives and two at-large.
As with the creation of new districts, the move to second class status will go into effect in 2024. At present, Columbus is still a “third class” city.
Under Indiana Code, municipalities are designated by status and population as follows:
Cities of 600,000 or more —First class cities
Cities of 34,000 to 599,999 — Second class cities
Cities of less than 34,000 — Third class cities
Other municipalities of any population — Towns
According to census counts from STATS Indiana, Columbus had already attained a population of more than 39,000 by the year 2000, and its 2020 count was a little more than 50,000.
However, such increases do not automatically trigger a change in status; state law says it is up to an eligible city’s legislative body to make that choice.
Columbus City Council voted earlier this summer to make the switch, with only Councilman Frank Miller, R- District 4, opposing the change.
