COLUMBIA, S.C. — The City of Columbia is moving forward with redistricting plans. All four council districts will have some manipulation of district lines due to population shifts within Columbia city limits.
Redistricting is the process that happens every ten years at every level of government -- from US Congress to municipalities and school districts -- and is based on US Census data. The goal of redistricting is to give equitable representation to residents within a district.
"People need to be concerned about what the lines look like so that it doesn’t unfairly benefit one population over another," said Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine. "A city like ours, it’s diverse and we want to make sure that we keep the diversity among our council. And so that all the views are represented as elected officials and that minority populations have a reasonable opportunity to elect elected officials who represents their views and values."
Columbia City Council will have a second reading of the redistricting maps at the 2 p.m. regular called meeting Tuesday, Dec. 21, in Council Chambers at City Hall.
Here is a rundown of the changes:
District 1 will gain a segment from District 2 that runs from Riverhill Circle to Garner Lane.
District 2 will gain these areas from District 1:
- the strip of land that runs from Broad River Road to I-126
- a portion of Ames Road from Columbia College Drive to Prescott Road, down to Farrow Road
District 2 gains from District 3:
- the area around the University of South Carolina and Five Points, bounded by Gervais, Harden, Santee, Maple, Devine, Blossom, Bull, Greene and Sumter streets
- and area abutting Forest Acres, bounded by Forest Drive, St. Julian Place, Byrnes, Harrison Road, Marling Drive, Covenant Road, and Dalloz, following the boundary of Forest Acres back to Forest Drive.
District 3 gains from District 2 the Olympia area around Olympia Park to the Congaree River up to Gervais Street to Lincoln, down to Blossom to Pickens, down to Whaley to Sumter.
District 3 also gains from District 4 the area off Garners Ferry Road that includes the USC School of Medicine, VA Dorn Hospital and the Brandon Hills and Meadowfield neighborhoods.
District 4 gains from District 3 that runs along Garners Ferry Road and includes the area around Eugene Street, Pine Haven Villas, up to Patterson, Carolina and Patricia, over to Sunview, down to Hazelwood to include South East Park.
Residents can expect to see the changes to district lines in the next municipal election in 2023.