Mayor's redistricting plan scrapped by city council

The Bloomington City Council defeated a resolution to create a five-member citizens commission to draw council district boundaries Wednesday.\nThe council districts, which are redrawn every ten years, were previously redrawn by the city clerk with the council's input in 1992.\nNeither Mayor John Fernandez, who submitted this resolution, nor council member Anthony Pizzo, who sponsored it, thought the previous method of redistricting was seriously flawed. Both felt this resolution was an improvement.\nPizzo explained the current system to the council.\n"It's ad-hoc, someone decides redistricting needs to be done and does it," Pizzo said. "It's our responsibility ... to establish some kind of procedure. Let's do it right."\nDeputy Mayor James McNamara represented the mayor's office at the meeting.\n"This resolution is about two things," McNamara said. "One: non-partisanship, not bi-partisanship, and two: sunshine on the process."\nAfter the meeting, McNamara explained that "sunshine on the process" referred to opening the public's eye to the redrawing process and determining which precincts should make up each council district. \nThe plan would have required at least one Democrat and one Republican to serve on the commission. \nCouncil member David Sabbagh, a Republican, offered an amendment which would have changed the resolution to two Democrats and two Republicans.\nHe felt that the three other members would all end up being Democrats, giving the Democrats a 4-1 majority on the commission.\n"You didn't hear what I said," Pizzo said to Sabbagh. "I'm trying to make this as non-political as possible. I think your amendment is politically contrived, and mine is not."\nSabbagh's amendment was rejected by all the other council members in attendance. \nJust before the council rejected the entire resolution, council member Andy Ruff spoke on the subject.\n"There's not a problem here that I see," Ruff said. "I see no reason not to use the process from ten years ago."\nThe city council also approved the two developments discussed at last week's meeting. \nThe first, tax abatement for the new headquarters of International Data, was approved after questions were raised about the need for abatement. \nCouncil member Jeffrey Willsey wondered why tax abatement was needed at this site, located at 1600 Bloomfield Rd. In his eyes, this area is able to grow and develop under normal conditions. \nIndiana state law requires that tax abatement only be granted when the council finds that the site in question cannot be developed under normal conditions.\nCouncil President Chris Gaal wondered if the company would construct this building in a different city if they didn't receive abatement. \n"It is not beyond the realm of possibility that they will go elsewhere," said Nathan Hadley, Executive Assistant for Economic Development. \nThe second item of legislation was an ordinance to allow a 254-unit rental property to be constructed on Sare Road on the far Southwest side of the city. \nThe council supported the ordinance after they heard neighboring residents endorse the plan.\nCouncil member Tim Mayer described how the development would fit in with the city's Growth Policies Plan, the comprehensive, long-term growth plan for Bloomington.\n"What's occurring here is exactly what we want to occur," Mayer said.