Pomona : Redistricting Help Hired

The City Council has voted to spend $8,750 to hire the Rose Institute, an affiliate of Claremont McKenna College, to help draw boundaries for new council district elections.

The council is planning to ask voters to approve a revamping of the city’s political system. The council, composed of four council members and a mayor, all elected by a citywide vote, would be expanded to seven members, elected by districts. The post of mayor would be rotated among council members.

The proposal is being developed for placement on the June 5 election ballot. If approved by voters, the new system would take effect in the 1991 municipal elections.

Mayor Donna Smith this week reiterated her opposition to the plan, saying residents prefer to elect a mayor directly and to vote for all council members, not just one in their district. But Councilwoman Nell Soto said district elections would produce council members who are closer to their constituents. In addition, she said, Pomona is one of the few cities in Los Angeles County that elects a mayor directly, and the proposed change would give Pomona the same system that works well in other cities.