Imbalanced districts
Given Newton County has a population right at 100,000, the five new districts should each contain as close to 20,000 residents as possible. Because of the county's explosive growth during the past decade, the balance has been thrown off.
Below are the populations of the current districts:
District 1 - 20,383
District 2 - 21,134
District 3 - 27,221
District 4 - 12,865
District 5 - 18,355
Covington City Council agenda:
***WORK SESSION @ 5:30 PM***
1. Call to order.
Mayor Carter to swear in new Covington Fire Fighter Evan McAvoy.
OLD BUSINESS
2. Discussion of the minutes from the Regular Council Meeting held on September 19, 2011.
3. Discussion of the final reading of an ordinance for the City of Covington:
"AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF COVINGTON, GEORGIA, TO AMEND THE COVINGTON MUNICIPAL CODE, ENACTED AND ADOPTED ON THE 16TH DAY OF OCTOBER, 2001, AS AMENDED BY PREVIOUS AMENDMENTS, TO ALTER CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF SECTION 5.12.060 OF THE SAID CODE RELATING TO QUALIFICATIONS OF LICENSEES TO SELL ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, TO REPEAL CONFLICTING ORDINANCES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."
NEW BUSINESS
4. Discussion of changes to the agenda.
5. Public comments for any item not on the agenda.
6. Covington-Newton County Chamber to present 3rd quarter Economic Development update.
7. Discussion of the first reading of an ordinance for the City of Covington:
"AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF COVINGTON, GEORGIA, TO AMEND THE COVINGTON MUNICIPAL CODE, ENACTED AND ADOPTED ON THE 16th DAY OF OCTOBER, 2001, AS AMENDED BY PREVIOUS AMENDMENTS, TO ALTER CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF TITLE 8 (HEALTH AND SAFETY) OF THE SAID CODE OF ORDINANCES FOR THE PURPOSE OF REVISING SECTION 8.16.010 (INOPERATIVE VEHICLES) THEREOF, TO REPEAL CONFLICTING ORDINANCES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."
8. Discussion of the first reading of an ordinance for the City of Covington:
"AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF COVINGTON, GEORGIA, TO AMEND THE COVINGTON MUNICIPAL CODE, ENACTED AND ADOPTED ON THE 16TH DAY OF OCTOBER, 2001, AS AMENDED BY PREVIOUS AMENDMENTS, TO ALTER CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF CHAPTER 8.24 OF THE SAID CODE RELATING TO UNFIT BUILDINGS, TO REPEAL CONFLICTING ORDINANCES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES."
9. Discussion of bids to purchase utility vehicles for the Covington Fire Department.
10. Discussion of ECG Pole Attachment Service.
11. Discussion of request for street closures in Clark's Grove on Halloween.
12. Discussion of road closure on November 17th for the Lighting of the Courthouse.
13. Discussion of road closure on December 3rd for the Covington/Newton Christmas Parade.
14. Public comments.
15. Recommendations of the City Manager.
16. Recommendations of the Mayor and Council.
17. Adjourn.
Newton County Board of Commissioners agenda:
A. Call to Order: Chairman Kathryn Morgan
B. Invocation: Pastor Ronny Brannen, Prospect UMC
C. Pledge of Allegiance
D. Items for Consideration
General Administration:
Chamber of Commerce: 3rd Quarter Economic Development Update
Approval of BOC W/S Minutes dated September 20, 2011
Approval of BOC Minutes dated September 20, 2011
Unfinished Business:
Intergovernmental Agreement: Newton County/City of Covington - Main Street
New Business:
1. Appointment - District 4: Zoning Board of Appeals
2. Administrative Services: Replacement of (3) Mail Machines
3. JDA: Resolution R100411 - Replacement Letter of Credit
4. Alcovy River Level Control Weir Repair: Award Bid
5. Sheriff's Office: Acceptance of CJCC Grant Funds - $9,032.00
6. Juvenile Court: Acceptance Grant/Purchase of Services - $7,500.00
7. Public Works: Rocky Plains Road/Moores Road, Resurfacing - Award Bid
8. E911/Communications: Upgrade Telephone System
9. 2011 SPLOST: Part B - Fleet Replacement
Alcohol License:
Final Reading
Texaco Food Mart
3633 Salem Road
Covington, GA 30016
Owner: Ramandeep Singh Mokha (100%)
District Two
County Checks:
General Fund: 74775-75015
Special Revenue Fund: 1623-1624
Juvenile Services: 2046-2051
Jail Fund: 604-606
E-911 Fund: 1984-1995
Grant Fund: 3508-3518
Fire: 67544-67552
Capital Improvement: 2222-2223
FEMA: 2221 only
2005 SPLOST: 1036-1038
Debt Service Fund: 74899 only
Cornish Creek: 12139-12160
Solid Waste: 6878-6897
Senior Services: 7096-7106
Gaither Plantation: 2474-2476
HealthCare Insurance: 1102 only
A. Citizen Comments/Commissioner's Comments
B. Executive Session
C. Adjourn
Now that the state and federal districts have been redrawn, local redistricting is beginning in earnest.
The Newton County boards of commissioners and education are having a joint work session at 7 p.m., Monday in the Jury Impaneling Room, on the first floor of the Newton County Judicial Center.
The population boom in Newton County's western half created a large imbalance in the number of residents in each of the five county and school board districts.
In the 2010 Census, Newton County had a county of nearly 100,000 residents, which means that each district should ideally have 20,000 residents. As they're currently drawn, District 3 has the most residents after nearly doubling during the decade to a population of 27,221, while District 4 barely grew at all and has only 12,865 residents.
As a result, District 3 will have to shrink geographically, while District 4 will have to expand, likely reaching further outside of Covington than before.
Historically, the county has depended on U.S. Department of Justice experts to facilitate redistricting, because of the strict legal requirements, county Chairman Kathy Morgan said previously. The justice department must approve any maps.
However, the boards of commissioners and education will likely form a committee to make recommendations about how to alter the districts. An initial redistricted map is expected to be created this fall and then presented to the public through public hearings.
If all goes according to schedule, a resolution approving the maps would be written up by Newton's state elected officials in January and passed by the General Assembly next session. The new maps would then go into effect during the 2012 election.
Monday's meeting will be the first public meeting discussing local redistricting efforts.
A full week of meetings
The county board of commissioners will also have a work session at 6 p.m., Tuesday at the Historic Courthouse to the schedule for replacing county vehicles during the next six years as 2011 SPLOST funds are collected. The 2011 SPLOST included $2.5 million for county vehicle replacement, and the first vehicle purchases have been approved - 34 cars for the Newton County Sheriff's Office.
The Covington City Council will have its regularly scheduled meeting at 6:30 p.m., Monday at Covington City Hall, preceded as always by a work session at 5:30 p.m.
The board of commissioners will have its regularly scheduled meeting at 7 p.m., Tuesday at the Historic Courthouse.
To see the agendas for the city's and county's regularly scheduled meetings check out the "Related Content" section directly to your left.
