Escambia County adopts new commission districts making Perdido Key part of District 1

Perdido Key is now officially part of District 1 after the Escambia County Commission adopted new commission districts Thursday that will stand for the next 10 years as the county's political boundaries.

The 4-1 vote Thursday night was the final one required to adopt the new districts.

The Escambia County School Board is set to adopt an identical map for its board members' districts later this month.

In a joint meeting in October, the new boundaries were primarily agreed to by a majority of the commission and school board. The boundaries were finalized in another joint meeting in November.

New map: Escambia County, school board narrow down redistricting map. Here are key takeaways

Last meeting: Despite last-minute push, Perdido Key will likely move into Beulah voting district

As it stands under the 2020 census, all five districts are within the county and school board's goal of drawing districts that do not deviate more than 5% from an even five-way split of the entire county's population. An equal division would create an ideal district size of 64,381 people.

District population comparison under new boundaries

The new boundaries of District 1 make it the second-largest district in land area but it is the least populated of the five districts. District 1 will be under the ideal population by 3.8%, with a count of 61,909.

Chairman and District 1 Commissioner Jeff Bergosh said previously that the smaller population in his district is a feature of the plan as the northern part of the district in the Beulah area is experiencing some of the most rapid growth in the county and will catch up to the other districts.

Under the new plan, District 4 will be the most populated district with a total population of 67,553 which is 4.93% higher than the ideal population.

Despite losing the Perdido Key area, District 2 remains the next highest population of 66,316 which is 3% higher than the ideal population.

District 5 is the next highest population at 63,475 which is 1.4% lower than the ideal population

District 3 will have a population of 62,652 people which is 2.7% under the ideal population.

Countywide elections for commissioners? Not in Escambia County

Unlike most other Florida counties which hold county-wide elections for commissioners, Escambia County has single-member districts in which voters can vote only in the commission district where they live.

The county ended up with its current system in part because of court rulings in the 1980s that said the county had to ensure equitable representation on the board of County Commissioners.

Commissioners also had the simultaneous goal of not disenfranchising Black voters by keeping District 3 a majority-minority district among the voting-age population.

Under the plan, District 3 will have 48,084 people of voting age as of the 2020 Census with demographics of voters in the district at 47.59% Black, 42.84% white and 5.41% Hispanic.

The other four districts' voting-age populations will be majority white, ranging from 66.76% white in District 2 up to 76.74% white in District 4.

The lone vote opposed came from Commissioner Doug Underhill who attempted one last effort Thursday to prevent the adoption of the new boundaries, saying the county should wait until after the 2022 elections.

When do Florida counties tackle redistricting?

The redistricting process was compressed because of the delayed release of the 2020 Census because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The process usually begins in March, but this year the county did not receive the numbers until September.

Florida law requires county commissions to redistrict only in an odd year following the Census.

At the time there was a debate whether to wait until 2023 to redistrict. Underhill joined a majority of commissioners who said they could complete the process before the end of the year, while Bergosh and District 3 Commissioner Lumon May wanted to wait.

Faced with the final adoption of the map Thursday and with his district set to lose Perdido Key, Underhill argued the county should wait.

"Jeff, you were right, and I was wrong," Underhill said.

Perdido Key business owners also appealed to the County Commission to delay.

Charles Krunpnick, president of the Perdido Key Association, said moving the island out of District 2 could awaken fears such as making Perdido Key Drive a four-lane road.

Joe Gilchrist, a co-owner of FloraBama, said moving Perdido Key into District 1 would put it at a bigger disadvantage as it competed for public infrastructure projects from the county's limited resources and he added the county's redistricting process did not provide for enough public participation.

"I used to teach government and one of the things I know is if you don't allow people to be involved in the democratic process, you lose it," Gilchrist said.

Underhill is not running for re-election in 2022, but four candidates have filed to replace Underhill on the board.

At least one of those candidates, Steven Stroberger, running as a Republican, would be drawn out of the district as his residence is in the Innerarity Island neighborhood.

"The map you're proposing is very unpopular in Perdido Key and Innerarity Island," Stroberger said.

Mel Pino, who is running as a non-party affiliated candidate, took the opposite view saying the new District 2 represents "the real" west side.

"People keep saying Perdido Key doesn't have anything to do with Beulah, but Perdido Key doesn't have anything to do with Warrington," Pino said.

Bergosh said the redistricting wasn't aimed at any political candidates.

"The map isn't perfect but the map is good," Bergosh said. "It meets the spirit and letter of the law."

Bergosh said he will be announcing town hall events next year for the Perdido Key area to hear from his new constituents.

Jim Little can be reached at jwlittle@pnj.com and 850-208-9827.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Escambia County adopts new districts making Perdido Key part of District 1