Deciding a hub-and-spoke model of ward boundaries was too extreme a change, the board of trustees for Edmonton Public Schools voted to adopt more subtle boundary changes before the next civic election.
A divided board approved what the board chairman dubbed the “least worst option” to redraw ward boundaries to accommodate substantial growth in Edmonton’s south and northeast.
New boundaries in the works for Edmonton Public Schools electoral wards. The boundaries were approved 6-2 on Dec. 13, 2016.
Four options on the table ranged from minor tweaking of the existing boundaries to a complete overhaul that would divide the city into nine slender pie slices.
The school board must change its electoral boundaries because growth at the fringes has seen the populations in some wards rise much more than others. In 2013, the board approved a rule stating the population of public school supporters in each ward must be no more or less than 25 per cent different from the average ward size.
Trustee Ray Martin was one of two trustees who voted against the proposed boundary redraw, which pushes the northeast ward he represents further to the south and slices it in half with the North Saskatchewan River. He called the move “a major mistake.” Provincial electoral districts don’t cross the river, and civic wards shouldn’t either, he said.
Bridget Stirling, who represents Ward G in east central Edmonton, also opposed the new boundaries, saying it split elementary and junior high schools that feed McNally High School into different wards. The map is also contrary to the board’s policy to draw boundaries around communities of interest, she said.
Only three trustees said “they could live with” a more substantial change that would see ward boundary lines radiating out from the centre of the city.
Chairman Michael Janz said the board rejected a similar pie slice proposal in 2010 for the same reasons — that it was too substantial a change that might confuse voters. Other trustees said the adjustments would create a lot of work for district staff to explain the changes to citizens.
The rejected pie-slice model.
A district administrative report to the board said the pie-slice model trustees rejected would produce the smallest differences in voter population and the number of children within each ward when compared to the other three options. It would also be the option most likely to be able to accommodate continued growth at Edmonton’s edges.
A second option that brought boundaries close to new city council wards would also be a “departure” from the existing system, the report noted. It would make Ward H in southwest Edmonton the least populous, and Ward F in south central Edmonton comparatively large. Many trustees said they didn’t mind that option, saying boundaries that are close to council wards would be easier for voters to understand.
The fourth option on the table was also similar to existing wards, but had the northeast Ward B as the only one crossing the river. However, population projections showed some areas would be coming close to deviating by 25 per cent by the time the 2024 civic election comes around.
Regardless of which model trustees chose, administrators recommended the board pass an amended bylaw that would base boundaries on the total city population, rather than the number of people who identify as public school board supporters in the city’s census. The board voted unanimously in favour of that change.
Basing the math on the total number of residents will “better reflect the responsibilities of the board of trustees,” administrators said, as public schools must legally accept any student that lives within school boundaries.
The 2016 municipal census also saw a jump in the number of respondents that neglected to say whether they are public or Catholic school supporters. Nearly 42 per cent of residents enumerated didn’t reply to the question, leaving school boards with a dearth of information.
A final proposal for the new boundaries will come before the board again in January.
jfrench@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/jantafrench