Thurston sets public hearing on new district map as measure to expand commission passes

Correction: The newly created District 5 may be located in the north between Districts 1 and 2. Meanwhile, District 4 may be located in the southwest of the county. A previous version of this article misstated the preliminary locations for District 4 and 5.

Thurston County’s Board of County Commissioners will expand from three members to five in 2023 after voters approved a Nov. 8 ballot measure to enlarge the board.

Preliminary results indicate about 55.1% (66,323) of voters favored adding two members to the Board of County Commissioners. Around 44.9% (53,963) voted against the measure.

Turnout for the election reached 64.5%, according to the Thurston County Auditor’s Office. With the measure poised to pass, the board decided Nov. 22 to set a public hearing on Dec. 7 for the recently drafted five-commissioner-district boundary lines.

A map of the new districts shows a District 5 that encompasses an area south of Lacey and extends up between Olympia and Lacey towards Johnson Point. Notably, this district would include Hicks Lake, Long Lake and Pattison Lake.

The map also has a District 4 that spans southwest and south-central Thurston County. This area includes Rochester, Tenino, Bucoda, Rainier and parts of Tumwater.

Under this proposal, Commissioners Carolina Mejia, Tye Menser and Gary Edwards would retain smaller versions of their existing districts.

The county commission and the Port of Olympia chose this map after a redistricting committee narrowed down three options, The Olympian previously reported.

A measure by the Port to expand its commission from three to five members also was passing. About 51% (60,779) of voters chose to expand the Port commission while 49% (58,480) voted against the proposal, according to the Auditor’s Office.

Both bodies decided to put their respective measures on the ballot this year after the county population surpassed 300,000. Proponents of the change have argued it will improve communication among commissioners, the delegation of tasks and representation.

County Manager Ramiro Chavez said the redistricting committee will consider any revisions to the map on Dec. 8, the day after the public hearing. The Board of County Commissioners would then approve the final map by Dec. 13.

The map will be sent to the Auditor’s Office once the county and Port commissions both approve the boundaries, Chavez said. The additional members who will represent the newly created districts will be elected in November 2023.

In accordance with state law, the person representing District 4 will serve a one-year term and the person representing District 5 will serve a three-year term.

Chavez said these shorter terms will allow future elections to align with the current staggered schedule, so the entire board is never up for re-election.

Adding two seats to the county commission will cost the county taxpayers about $754,000 a year in ongoing annual staffing costs, according to the county.

That’s on top of the roughly $1.1 million a year the county already pays in salaries and benefits to the three existing commissioners and their assistants, The Olympian previously reported.

Additionally, the county says expanding its commission will cost $392,000 in one-time election costs and $200,000 in ongoing election costs each four-year election cycle.

Meanwhile, the Port expects the two additional commissioners to cost $145,000 a year, The Olympian previously reported. This amount will combine with the $238,000 the Port already spends on its current commission, bringing the total to $383,000.

The county’s public hearing for the proposed map will be held at 3:30 p.m. Dec. 7 at the Thurston County Courthouse in Building 1, Room 280.