City Hall: Public hearing on proposed redistricting plan Tuesday

Dec. 5—RESIDENTS WILL HAVE a chance to weigh in on the city's proposed redistricting plans at a public hearing Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in the aldermanic chambers at City Hall.

Manchester city planners are recommending that ward boundaries be adjusted to reflect population changes in the 2020 Census.

Redistricting is the process of redrawing the boundaries of legislative districts, such as aldermanic wards.

Section 5.33 of Manchester's charter requires that the city be divided into 12 wards of equal populations, or as equal as practicable. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen are required to review ward boundaries every 10 years when federal census figures come out, or as necessary to conduct fair elections, pursuant to the state constitution.

On Aug. 12 and Sept. 16, the U.S. Census Bureau released its redistricting data.

The Census Bureau found that the 2020 population of Manchester was 115,644, up 5.5% from the 2010 population of 109,565.

Figures show the change in population was not evenly distributed among the wards. For example, Ward 2 gained fewest people (73), and Ward 12 gained the most (1,012).

As a result, the wards' populations has become more unequal than at the time of the last redistricting about 10 years ago. The difference between the most populous and least populous wards at the time was 269 people. Currently, the difference is 867 people.

According to city planner Jeffrey Belanger, the rule of thumb that the New Hampshire Supreme Court has used to ensure a redistricting plan meets the constitutional requirements for equality is 10% total deviation from an ideal district, defined as the average of the population and the number of districts.

According to Belanger, if the ward boundaries were left as they are, the total deviation of population from the ideal ward would be 8.99% — under the 10% maximum population deviation considered constitutional.

"Although leaving the ward boundaries as they are would be within constitutional limits, it would be close to them," Belanger wrote in a memo to city aldermen. "If Manchester's population were to increase along the same trends, more inequality would result."

City planners recommend aldermen redistrict the ward boundaries.

"Doing so would create more equal voting weight among Manchester's citizens, and it would put the board in a better position to comply with constitutional requirements," Belanger wrote.

Under the recommended proposal, populations among all wards would be much closer to the ideal 9,637 residents. Changes would vary across the city. For instance, the existing population in Ward 2 would rise from 9,292 to 9,657; in Ward 3, it would drop from 9,959 to 9,611.

In 2011, redistricting required a question to be placed on the ballot and approved by voters. In 2019, the legal descriptions of the wards were moved from the City Charter to the Code of Ordinances during a redistricting of Ward 6.

As a result, redistricting now only requires a public hearing be held, followed by a majority vote of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.

Anyone with questions on the process before the public hearing may contact the City Clerk's Office at (603) 624-6455 or by email at cityclerk@manchesternh.gov.

MPD accreditation

The Manchester Police Department is scheduled for its national reaccreditation assessment through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) beginning this week.

Manchester police invite the public to participate in the assessment by attending a public hearing on Monday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the community room at the police department, 405 Valley St.

Community members will have the chance to interact with assessors and provide input on the Manchester Police Department.

Those want to participate process but who can't attend in person are invited to participate via Zoom or phone. More information on that can be found at manchesternh.gov/Departments/Police.

The assessment examines all aspects of the Manchester Police Department, including but not limited to policies, procedures, operations and support services.

The Manchester Police Department has been nationally accredited through CALEA since 1990. It's one of about 1,200 departments to hold CALEA National Accreditation status. Maintaining the accreditation involves yearly remote assessments as well as on-site assessments every four years.

Accredited agencies must show adherence to more than 120 standards to meet standards set forth by CALEA.

The purpose of this accreditation is to ensure Manchester Police meet an established set of professional standards, and requires:

—Comprehensive and uniform written directives that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.

—Reports and analyses to make fact-based and informed management decisions.

—Preparedness to address natural or man-made critical incidents.

—Community relationship-building and maintenance.

—Independent review by subject matter experts.

—Continuous pursuit of excellence through annual reviews and other assessment measures.

After a two-day evaluation, the assessment team will prepare a final report and submit it to the commission, which will make the final determination on reaccreditation.

The assessors assigned to this reaccreditation are Chief Michael Crowell of Manlius, N.Y., team leader, and retired Capt. Randall R. Jones, current accreditation manager for Fort Myers, Fla.

Paul Feely is the City Hall reporter for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. Reach him at pfeely@unionleader.com.