Here are 5 of the worst excuses for radically redrawing SLO County supervisor district maps

The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors will reconvene today — in front of what’s expected to be a full house — to further debate redrawing district boundaries to reflect population changes.

Four maps have been submitted by a county redistricting consultant, and several more have been offered by the public — including some with interesting names like “Blatant Republican Power Grab Map” and “Attempt at Richard’s Map.”

The most contentious issue is whether to put the city of San Luis Obispo in a single district, instead of dividing it among three districts as it is now. If that happens, there will need to be major shifts of district lines to equalize populations. It would likely mean splitting the North Coast between two districts, which would put Cambria and Paso Robles in the same district — strange bed fellows indeed.

There’s also a proposal to shift heavily Democratic Oceano out of District 4, which would favor Lynn Compton, the Republican board chair who’s seeking reelection next year.

Supporters of the radical remapping insist they aren’t motivated by politics, but we are not convinced, because the changes would help Republicans retain and even grow their majority on a board that serves a county with more registered Democrats.

Instead, they insist they are operating in good faith, while relying on other shallow and fallacious justifications, like these:

Having multiple supervisors gives the city of San Luis Obispo an unfair advantage.

“Why should one city have multiple supervisors voting on behalf of their citizens?” one speaker asked at the last redistricting hearing. “I live in Paso Robles. Wouldn’t it be nice if I had three supervisors endorsing what we want in my community?”

Of all the reasons given for cramming the city of San Luis Obispo into a single district, this is perhaps the most bizarre. Having a portion of SLO in three districts doesn’t guarantee the city three votes. If you don’t believe it, look at voting patterns over the past 10 or so years; they don’t reflect the values of SLO.

SLO is a progressive city. It doesn’t allow drive-through windows in fast-food restaurants. It’s in the process of hiring a diversity inclusion and equity manager. It actually fined businesses that violated COVID rules — something the county refused to do.

This city is not capable of steamrolling a conservative, or even a moderate, Board of Supervisors. If anything, its influence is diluted by being divided — not that it bothers the citizens of SLO.

There’s a good reason for that: They have an elected City Council that decides most of its issues: planning and development, water rates, police and fire budgets. Regional issues like transportation planning and air quality protection are under the purview of countywide boards.

Cities don’t depend on the Board of Supervisors nearly as much as unincorporated communities.

Cities shall not be split.

Here’s what state law really says: “To the extent practicable, the geographic integrity of a city or census designated place shall be respected in a manner that minimizes its division.”

Let’s repeat the very first four words: “To the extent practicable.”

It’s nearly impossible not to split up some cities by virtue of their size.

And that’s OK. What’s more important — under state law — is to keep “communities of interest” intact. That’s defined as “a population that shares common social or economic interests.”

Under that definition, Cal Poly qualified as a community of interest. Downtown SLO is another. They do not have to be joined at the hip.

It’s better to have four supervisors representing the coast than just three.

Here’s how the argument goes: SLO County would have more clout with the state Coastal Commission if four supervisors, rather than the current three, had coastal land in their districts.

The last time we checked, all five supervisors are supposed to represent the entire county, so there’s nothing preventing all of them from joining forces before the Coastal Commission — if they all agree on the issue.

Chances are, they won’t.

Oceano has more in common with Grover Beach than Arroyo Grande.

It’s been noted that Grover Beach and Oceano share a fire department, a sewer plant and a school district. The same can be said of Arroyo Grande and Oceano.

All three communities have much in common, including a fire department, sewer plant and school district.

The entire South County is, in fact, a tightly knit region that could arguably be in a single district. Yet no one is seriously considering that, because the numbers just wouldn’t work out.

The map submitted by Richard Patten is the only one that meets state requirements.

Patten’s map keeps most of the city of SLO in one district but splits the North Coast. So, strictly speaking, that does not meet state requirements, which place priority on keeping communities of interest intact over keeping cities intact.

As we’ve said before, no map is going to perfectly meet all the state criteria. Redistricting is — literally and figuratively — a balancing act. Populations must be balanced, but the desires of constituents should be as well.

The unincorporated communities of the North Coast — Cambria, Cayucos, San Simeon, Los Osos — have been loud and clear. They want to remain in a single district, represented by a single supervisor who will speak for their common interests.

On the other hand, residents of SLO — who are already represented by a strong City Council — aren’t demanding to be in a single district; many oppose that and want boundaries left alone.

If San Luis Obispo County residents are to have faith in this process — and in their county government — members of the Board of Supervisors should listen to all constituents and ask themselves: Whose interests would really be served by a major revamping of district boundaries?

If the answer is conservative power brokers working behind the scenes to gerrymander SLO County for their personal benefit, it’s absolutely the wrong one and we expect all five supervisors to stand up, label the fake arguments what they are and stop them.

This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.