West Lafayette council members are set to consider new district boundaries for the city. State code requires revised district maps to be adopted by the end of the year.
Councilors have narrowed the options from five to two, and will choose one at their meeting Monday.
One of the maps was produced by the county Area Plan Commission (APC), while the other was spearheaded by Councilor Eddie VanBogaert (D-District 1).
He says his proposal makes an effort to keep existing community groups intact.
"I want to make sure that residents that have similar needs are represented by the same person, they have a single point of contact, so they can be more effectively represented in local government. So maintaining those neighborhoods is really critical."
VanBogaert also says his map would give students and infrequent voters adequate representation in local government.
Councilor Vicki Burch (R-District 4) also crafted an alternative to the current five-district layout, but it didn’t make the final cut. She says her plan included four districts and three at-large seats, which she says would have given students better representation.
"They certainly need a voice, a really good voice. And as I said, it gives them an extra person. They still have a district representative and they will have an extra at-large person. So that's an extra vote for them."
Of the two remaining proposals, Burch says she prefers the APC’s version, because it seems more balanced.
The 2015 election cycle will be the first to feature the new district layouts.
The West Lafayette City Council meets Monday, December 3 at 6:30 p.m.