The Tallulah City Council during its regular meeting Wednesday night took yet another step toward beginning construction and rehabilitation at the city's water plant, and also heard the second proposal for redistricting plans following the 2020 census.
The council unanimously approved a resolution granting preliminary authority for the City of Tallulah to issue, sell and deliver water revenue bonds in the amount of $4,065,000. Approving the resolution, councilmembers said, is just one more step forward in the process of beginning work on the plant. The approval allows the financing of the more than $4 million loan from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) – a 40-year commitment at 1.37 percent interest – to go before the bond commission for approval. In addition to the loan, a $3.7 million grant will be applied to the total $7.8 million price tag for work on the plant.
The council also heard the second redistricting proposal from North Delta Regional Planning and Development District Executive Director Doug Mitchell. In October, Mitchell presented the council with his first option for redistricting, a process that must be completed every 10 years following the U.S. census in order to redraw lines from municipal to congressional districting across the country. Mitchell said, since 2010, the City of Tallulah has dropped in overall population from 7,091 residents in 2010, to 6,286 in 2020, a loss of 805 people.
"This is one attempt at balancing the district for deviation," Mitchell told the council during October’s presentation. "It doesn't mean we have to go with this one, but it meets all of the requirements."
The main factor in meeting U.S. Census Bureau requirements, deviation, Mitchell explained, refers to the difference between populations of electoral districts, which must fall withing a certain percentage in order to achieve "equal representation for voting, with deviation and racial breakdowns." Electoral districts are constitutionally required to have similar populations; however, meeting that standard can be tricky, Mitchell said, hence the Census Bureau requiring redistricting each decade.
Wednesday, Mitchell presented the council with two options, both of which addressed shifts in the most affected areas of Tallulah – Districts 1 and 4. While Mitchell said optimum deviation occurs when the numbers reach .10 percent or lower, plan 1 settled at .1161 percent, while plan 2 falls at .076 percent.
Mayor Charles Finlayson said a public hearing will be held in two weeks in order for the council and NDRPDD to hear questions and address concerns from the public prior to a TCC vote. The council’s deadline for accepting a redistricting proposal is December 29.
