HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - CC - 2021.11.01 Study SessionCITY O
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BURLINGAME CITY COUNCIL
Approved Minutes
City Council Special Meeting on November 1, 2021
1. CALL TO ORDER
A duly noticed meeting of the Burlingame City Council was held on the above date via Zoom Webinar at
5:32 p.m.
2. ROLL CALL
MEMBERS PRESENT: Beach, Brownrigg, Colson, O'Brien Keighran, Ortiz
MEMBERS ABSENT: None
3. STAFF REPORT
a. THIRD PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE TRANSITION FROM AT -LARGE ELECTIONS TO
BY -DISTRICT ELECTIONS FOR CITY COUNCIL SEATS
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer began by giving a brief background on the City's transition to district elections.
She explained that in January 2020, the City received a letter from the law firm Shenkman and Hughes
alleging that the City's at -large elections system violated the California Voting Rights Act of 2001. The
letter alleged that the City's current voting system "dilute[d] the ability of Asians ... to elect candidates of
their choice or otherwise influence the outcome of the City's council elections." This argument is based
primarily on the fact that while Asian -Americans comprised around 20% (according to the 2010 census) of
the City's population, an Asian -American has never been elected to the City Council.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer noted that several other cities throughout the county have received similar letters
including Redwood City, South San Francisco, San Mateo, Half Moon Bay, and Millbrae. She explained
that each City's Council made the same decision as Burlingame —to reach an agreement and transition to
district elections rather than spend millions of dollars in litigation. Therefore, on March 16, 2021, the
Council approved a resolution agreeing to transition to district elections.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that the City hired Redistricting Partners to assist the City in drawing
the district lines. She noted that Redistricting Partners is assisting several jurisdictions in the area including
San Mateo, Oakland, San Jose, and Berkeley.
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City Clerk Hassel -Shearer stated that the Council held two public hearings on February 1 and May 3,
regarding the transition to district elections. She explained that these hearings were a chance for the public
to understand why the City was transitioning and the laws behind the districting process.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer noted that since the May 3 hearing, the City Clerk's office, consisting of Andrew
Kwoka and herself, undertook extensive outreach. She outlined the different options members of the public
had during this time period to provide the City with input including drawing their own map and filling out a
Community of Interest form. She reviewed the different ways that staff shared information with the public
including social media, the eNews, local media, through the Library's curbside pick-up, mass mailers, and in
the Parks and Recreation quarterly guide.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that the Clerk's Office held over 50 outreach events including at the
Chamber's Fresh Market, at Parks and Recreation events, and pop -ups on Broadway, Burlingame Avenue,
and at the Library.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that all the maps that members of the public drew and the Community
of Interest worksheets that were filled out were given to the consultant. The consultant then utilized this
information along with the 2020 Census data to draw draft maps.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that the City hired a consultant to draw the district lines not only for
their expertise but also because they wouldn't know where the current Councilmembers live. She explained
that this would ensure that no bias was involved in drawing the district maps. She asked that the public
review the draft maps not by where the Councilmembers live but whether or not they encapsulated
neighborhoods and communities of interest.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer asked the public to continue to email her any input they have about the draft maps.
Redistricting Partners Chief Administrative Officer Kimi Shigetani gave the Council a presentation on the
draft maps.
Ms. Shigetani began with a brief overview of the districting process. She explained that the Fair Maps Act
mandates the following set of criteria when drawing district plans:
• Relatively equal size — people, not citizens
• Contiguous — districts should not hop/jump
• Maintain "communities of interest"
• Follow city and census designated place boundaries
• Keep districts compact — appearance/function
Ms. Shigetani outlined that this would be the first districting cycle where communities of interest are
considered. Moreover, she stated that communities of interest would drive the process. She added that this
allows members of the public to ensure minimal division of their neighborhood.
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Ms. Shigetani explained that Redistricting Partners provided the City with three draft map plans. She noted
that each plan has an overview of the lines, a data table, individual district pages, and web maps.
Ms. Shigetani stated that Burlingame's population as stated in the 2020 Census is roughly 31,000.
Therefore, each district will have approximately 6,200 people.
Ms. Shigetani reviewed Draft Plan A. She noted that this plan follows the railroad, highways, and other
main streets. Additionally, she explained that it:
• Keeps Downtown Burlingame and Burlingame Park whole
• Keeps other neighborhoods whole including: Bayfront, Burlingame Gardens, Burlingables, Lyon
Hoag, Mills Estate, Burlingame Plaza, and Ray Park
• Keeps Burlingame Village and Burlingame Grove together
Splits Burlingame Terrace along Palm Drive
Splits Burlingame Hills as a result of the unincorporated portion
Ms. Shigetani reviewed the data table for Draft Plan A. She noted that the total deviation for this map is
6.8%.
Ms. Shigetani reviewed Draft Plan B. She noted that this plan follows neighborhood boundaries but crosses
the train tracks in District B. Additionally, she explained that it:
• Keeps Lyon Hoag, Burlingables, and Burlingame Garden together
• Keeps Downtown Burlingame and Burlingame Park together, and splits Burlingame Terrace along
Palm Drive
Keeps Mills Estate, Burlingame Hills, and Burlingame Plaza together
Ms. Shigetani reviewed the data table for Draft Plan B. She noted that it is has a total deviation of 4.5%.
Ms. Shigetani reviewed Draft Plan C. She explained that it follows neighborhood boundaries and prioritizes
keeping southern neighborhoods together. Additionally, she stated that it:
Keeps Downtown Burlingame and the eastern portions of Burlingame Park together
Keeps Easton Addition together and the eastern portion of Burlingame Hills together
• Keeps Mills Estate, Burlingame Plaza, and Ray Park together and keeps the western portion of
Burlingame Hills together
• Keeps the western portion of Burlingame Park, Burlingame Terrace, and Burlingame Grove together
• Splits Burlingame Village along Oxford Road to Dufferin Avenue
Ms. Shigetani stated that the total deviation for this plan is 4.6%.
Ms. Shigetani discussed the next steps for City Council:
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• Identify preferred plan(s) with an understanding that none of these are final plans as it is an iterative
process
• Suggest possible changes — adjustments can be made to any of the draft plans
• Provide direction for the preparation of new draft maps to be put out for public input, future review,
and adoption.
• Consider new draft maps at a public hearing scheduled for December 6.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran stated that when she reviewed the maps, she noted that none of the districts went
across Burlingame west to east. She asked why there wasn't a west -east banded approach to districting. Ms.
Shigetani stated that the draft maps follow existing arterials (El Camino Real, Highway 101, and the railroad
tracks) that all go north to south. She added that redistricting tends to follow major highways and other
geographical identifiers when drawing a map.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran asked if Redistricting Partners took into consideration input from the public,
through the City Clerk's outreach, in developing the draft maps. Ms. Shigetani replied in the affirmative.
She added that they also took into consideration historical neighborhoods and the Census data.
Councilmember Beach thanked the City Clerk's Office for their outreach effort on this topic. She noticed in
all the maps that the north-western district seems to stay the same. She asked why this was. Ms. Shigetani
stated that the demographers utilized El Camino Real as a natural boundary and tried to keep neighborhoods
whole.
Councilmember Beach asked if some of the demographics were also taken into consideration. She noted that
the north-western district has the highest population of Asian -Americans. Ms. Shigetani stated that under the
Federal Voting Rights Act, if there is a way to create a majority -minority district, the jurisdictions are asked
to do so if it complies with the other rules and regulations of districting. She added that she would need to
consult with the demographers about whether this was a factor in drafting that district. She noted that
districts can't be drawn solely based on race. But if a community of interest can be kept together while
meeting the districting criteria, it should be done.
Councilmember Beach stated that all three draft plans divide a majority of El Camino Real down the middle.
She explained that she viewed El Camino Real as a distinct community of interest and wondered if it could
be kept together. Ms. Shigetani stated that she would need to check with the demographers.
Councilmember Brownrigg asked when the map needs to be finalized. City Clerk Hassel -Shearer stated that
per the tolling agreement with Shenkman and Hughes, the district map needs to be finalized in April 2022.
However, she added that her goal is to have the district map finalized in January/February of 2022 to allow
potential candidates time to organize their campaigns.
Councilmember Brownrigg stated that in reviewing the maps and hearing from the consultants, he could see
why it might be beneficial to have this process undertaken by a commission of Burlingame citizens. He
asked if there was time to create a citizen commission to work with the consultants. City Clerk Hassel -
Shearer stated that she didn't believe there was time to switch tactics. She added that she thought one of the
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great things about how the City conducted this process is that the community was given eight months to
provide input on what their neighborhood is and how the district maps should be drawn. She explained that
instead of having a commission that determines what the lines are, the process was given over to the City's
residents to determine how the lines should be drawn. She noted that while Redistricting Partners is using
arterial roads (as outlined in the Fair Maps Act), the consultants are also using feedback from the
community.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran asked what happens if someone doesn't run in a district. Ms. Shigetani stated that
the City would go through an appointment process. City Clerk Hassel -Shearer added that in her almost 1 1
years of working in San Mateo County elections, this issue hasn't occurred. Instead, she stated that a usual
hindrance for potential candidates is if the incumbent is running for re-election.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran opened the item up for public comment.
Martha Laboissiere stated that as a resident of the Burlingame Hills, she was saddened that the hills were
broken up into separate districts.
Ray Larios asked why Draft Plan B goes up Adeline Drive. Redistricting Partners CEO Paul Mitchell stated
that this notch was created by following Census blocks.
Jess Root asked about the definition of deviations in regard to draft plans. Additionally, he asked if an
apartment building owner is allowed to vote using the apartment building's address.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer stated that where an individual votes is defined by their home address.
Accordingly, if the owner of an apartment building lives in the building, then that would be their voter
address. But if the owner lives somewhere else, that other location would be their voting address.
Mr. Mitchell stated that deviation refers to the difference between what the district size is supposed to be to
create equal populations among all the districts and the district's actual population. He added that the plan's
total deviation is the difference between the largest district and the smallest district. He noted that for local
governments, 10% is the maximum deviation that is allowed.
Housing For All Burlingame representative Laura Hinz stated that the City is made up of 52% renters. She
asked that Redistricting Partners consider renters a community of interest. She noted that her organization
supports Plan B.
Former Mayor Cathy Baylock explained that she drew a district map based on when the City had five
elementary schools and what the attendance boundaries were. She noted that this would create districts that
had diverse socio-economics and housing zones. She added that she found it difficult to draw a district map
while including the population counts. She noted that out of the three maps, the best was Map B.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran asked if Redistricting Partners considered the school districts when drawing the
maps.
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It should be noted that when members of the public and the Council discussed "school districts, " they were
referring to attendance boundaries. The City only has one elementary school district — Burlingame School
District, and one upper school district — San Mateo Union High School District.
Mr. Mitchell stated that school districts and other underlying geography boundaries are often used when
districting at higher levels. He noted that in City districting, the predominant factor is the neighborhoods.
He explained that this is what is listed in the Fair Maps Act. (He went on to give an example of using school
district boundaries in a city that had a number of school districts within its boundaries).
Mr. Mitchell stated that his firm can also look into the renter data, in reference to an earlier comment.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer read a question for Mr. Mitchell. She asked when looking into the size of each
district, is the total population used or is the Citizen Voting Age Population used. Mr. Mitchell stated that
this issue was adjudicated by the Supreme Court, which determined that the districts needed to be of equal
size in terms of total residents in the last Census. He noted that California recently passed a law that adjusts
that data for prison population. He explained that prisoners are re -allocated to where they were living prior
to their incarceration.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer asked Mr. Mitchell to speak on how communities of interest are defined. He
explained that there are two routes for community of interest data to come to the consultants. The first route
is through community feedback. He explained that this is why the City Clerk's Office worked so hard to get
public input. He also discussed other data sources such as looking at where renters live and how
neighborhoods have been defined in the city.
Mr. Mitchell stated that Redistricting Partners asks for community of interest forms to include three things:
What is the community of interest?
What is their footprint?
What is the relationship to City governance?
Mr. Mitchell explained that communities of interest have been defined by experts as: "a group of people who
are hurt by their government." He gave examples of communities of interest such as a neighborhood
needing more street lights or a neighborhood suffering from pollution/noise issues. He explained that by
defining these groups of people as a community of interest and keeping them in the same district, they can
then affect change at the local government level. He gave another example of individuals living in a
neighborhood where cannabis shops are allowed to be open. He explained that this group might want to
enact regulations around the cannabis shops including hours of operation, lighting, etc. to assist their
neighborhood.
Mr. Mitchell gave examples of communities of interest that wouldn't be communities of interest for city
government and therefore wouldn't factor into the City's districting process. One example was if a city had
a water district and a neighborhood was upset about the increased cost of water. This would be a community
of interest for the water district. Another example was field policies at a school. This would be a
community of interest for the school district.
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Mr. Mitchell stressed the importance of finding a connection between the community of interest and its
relation to city governance.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer noted the discussion about the Burlingame Hills. She explained that a portion of
Burlingame Hills is unincorporated. She asked if portions of Burlingame that are unincorporated (meaning
the area is not within the City's boundaries, and the residents who live there don't vote for the Burlingame
City Council) are factored into the district maps. Mr. Mitchell replied in the negative. He explained that
only property within City boundaries is considered when districting.
Jennifer Pfaff stated that the map she drew was similar to Cathy Baylock's with west — east bands. She
noted that she had reviewed some of the maps Redistricting Partners created for other cities including
Roseville. She noted that they didn't always use arterial roads as boundaries and encouraged them not to do
so in Burlingame.
David Harris stated that he lives in Lyon Hoag and isn't happy with any of the three options. In Draft Plan
A, he noted that Lyon Hoag is combined with hotels and North Rollins Road. He added that he agreed with
previous commentators and thought the City should be divided into west — east bands to ensure that each
district is diverse.
Brian Berm stated that when the Council considers communities of interest, the most compelling is the
elementary school zones. He noted that the five zones that existed before Hoover would be a logical starting
point. He suggested that the draft map be redrawn around the attendance lines for the different elementary
schools in Burlingame. He asked how the draft maps anticipated future growth.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran asked if she was correct that the districting had to be done based on the 2020
Census data. Therefore, new neighborhoods would be included in the 2030 Census, and the City would need
to redistrict at that time. City Clerk Hassel -Shearer replied in the affirmative.
Mark Meyerson stated that Draft Plans B and C have a total deviation that is very small. He asked how the
compactness of the districts was measured. Mr. Mitchell explained that there are a lot of different
compactness measures that are used throughout the country. He noted that California has gotten rid of the
mathematical calculations for compactness. Instead, he explained that in California, a district's compactness
is measured by not avoiding nearby populations to get far away populations.
Kenny discussed the difference in geography in the hills. He noted that this area faces its own specific issues
and voiced concern about which schools his children would go to under the districting process.
Councilmember Beach asked that staff clarify how the districting process would impact which school kids go
to. City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that the City's districts would determine the five council seats. She
noted that the City's districting didn't factor into school attendance boundaries as that would be an issue for
the school districts.
Mr. Mitchell noted that all of Burlingame is in the Burlingame School District and the San Mateo Union
High School District. City Clerk Hassel -Shearer explained that when the public had been discussing the
school districts for mapping the City's districts, they were really referring to attendance lines.
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Mr. Mitchell noted that he's never seen attendance lines utilized in districting.
Connie Quirk asked about the ethnicity group identified as "other" in the data tables of the Draft Plans. Mr.
Mitchell explained that "other" encapsulates white people and American Indian/Alaskan Native (he noted
that this terminology is from the Census and CVAP and not the commonly used identifiers).
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer read a question from the public about including both sides of El Camino Real in
the same district. Mr. Mitchell explained that he would need to look into what the Census blocks are around
El Camino Real and how it would affect population counts in the different districts.
Scott and Serena voiced their support for Draft Map B as it kept Lyon Hoag and Burlingables together.
(comment submitted via publiccomment(c�r�,burlin ag me.org).
Former Councilmember Russ Cohen voiced confusion about the Caucasian population not ranking high
enough to be considered anything other than "other" since it seems that Burlingame is dominated by that
particular ethnic group. Secondly, he asked why the land east of 101 had to be included in the districting
process since it is mostly industrial, and no one lives there.
Mr. Mitchell stated that districting requires that all land be included in the process. He noted that businesses
east of 101 might affect a neighborhood's traffic or cause pollution/light issues. Therefore, it would make
sense to connect the business area with its closest neighborhood.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran closed the public hearing.
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer noted that she received a lot of questions about the timing of the districting
process. She explained that the three Burlingame City Council seats on the November 2022 ballot would be
district seats. Therefore, between November 2022 and November 2024, the Council would be made up of
three districted seats and two at -large seats. She explained that the remaining two districts would go to ballot
in November 2024. Accordingly, the transition to district elections would take two elections.
Councilmember Colson stated that there are people that live in the hotels. She noted that it would be
important that all land in Burlingame is included in the districting process.
Councilmember Colson voiced appreciation for the number of people that came forward from Lyon Hoag
and Downtown Burlingame that discussed the desire to keep that side of town together. She noted that she
agreed that people on the north side of town living near the BART station would have different concerns
from those on the south end of town.
Councilmember Colson noted that she appreciated the commentary around the Burlingame Hills and how it
is a cohesive unit. She explained that she would be interested in seeing if there was a way to keep this area
together as it was a community of interest.
Councilmember Colson stated that on Draft Plan B, she wasn't in favor of the weird notch around Adeline
Drive. She also discussed schools and the need to put an equal amount in each district. She suggested a
banded map from west to east.
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Vice Mayor Ortiz stated that he was surprised by some of the comments. He noted that to him, Map A made
the most sense. He explained that District D in Map A keeps together Mills Estate and Ray Park. He added
that he believed it would be hard to make an argument that the area between El Camino and California Drive
is represented by District E. He stated that District C, which is Easton Addition and the Hills, makes sense to
him. He noted that he had played with the mapping tool, and it was difficult to balance the population counts
between the different districts.
Vice Mayor Ortiz thought that the Lyon Hoag community would be pleased with Map A because it keeps
their neighborhood together, and no one lives on the other side of the 101.
Vice Mayor Ortiz stated that Draft Map A made the most sense to him.
Councilmember Beach stated that this was a hard task. She stated that in Map A, District D made sense to
her, as did District A in Map B.
Councilmember Beach discussed the public's comments about Draft Map A that Lyon Hoag shouldn't be in
the same district as the future Rollins Road neighborhood. She discussed how the north side of town would
be dealing with issues of BART/Caltrain that wouldn't affect Lyon Hoag. She thought the northern part of
town was more aligned with either the internal district between El Camino Real and California Drive or the
district that encompasses Ray Park and Mills Estate.
Councilmember Beach stated that she would like to see a map that considers Burlingame Hills as a cohesive
unit. She added that she thought that the renter community should be considered a community of interest.
Councilmember Beach stated that she understood the community's interest in creating a map with bands
from west to east that would create mini-Burlingames. However, she stated that what she learned through
the process is that districting focuses on communities of interest and not equally diverse districts. She added
that it is about giving representation to communities of interest.
Councilmember Beach asked for an overlay of the renter/homeowner data in the next discussion. She stated
that while she thought the City should consider the attendance lines of the elementary schools, it shouldn't
supersede other interests. She added that she thought the interests on both sides of El Camino Real were the
same and it should be in the same district.
Councilmember Beach stated that she thought most of the maps did a good job acknowledging the historical
neighborhoods. She added that she didn't like the weird notch around Adeline Drive in Draft Map B.
Councilmember Brownrigg thanked the community for their efforts on this matter.
Mayor O'Brien Keighran stated that she thought it was important to keep Burlingame Hills together if
possible. She noted that she also thought it was important to keep Lyon Hoag together. She added that she
would be interested to see the school attendance lines overlay.
Mr. Mitchell noted that he identified the issue with the notch on Draft Map B that included Adeline Drive.
He explained that it was the result of a Census block. (The demographers utilize the Census blocks when
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drawing draft maps, and therefore in order to make populations equal, it can sometimes take a portion of a
neighborhood and move it into a different district.)
City Clerk Hassel -Shearer asked the public not to wait until the next hearing to give feedback on the maps.
She explained that the more feedback she receives from the community, the more informed the district lines
are. She encouraged the public to contact her with any questions or comments at
mhasselshearer(c�r�,burlin ag me.org.
4. ADJOURNMENT
Mayor O'Brien Keighran adjourned the meeting at 7:01 p.m.
Respectfully submitted
/s/
Meaghan Hassel -Shearer, City Clerk
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