The new districts reflect the most recent census data on population.
County Manager Dustin Grabau says that with the new maps, the districts are changing a little, but not dramatically.
“There are a few areas where the lines have shifted a little bit, so it’s possible there are people - the council seat that represented them before is a different council seat now,” he says.
Wasatch County has a seven-member council. All county citizens vote for two at-large councilors, which are currently Marilyn Crittenden and Steve Farrell. The other five are elected by voters within the boundaries of the five geographic districts.
This year, council seats held by Crittenden, Danny Goode and Jeff Wade are up for election.
Changes were to keep population numbers balanced in each district. The new boundaries don’t impact school board seats.
The Heber North district, represented by Goode, gained lots of territory and now stretches from northern downtown Heber to just south of the Jordanelle Reservoir.
Meanwhile, some Heber City neighborhoods east of Mill Road that were part of Goode’s district are now in the Wasatch County East district, represented by Wade.
Councilor Spencer Park’s County South district added two towns: Charleston, which was formerly part of Councilor Mark Nelson’s Midway district, and Independence, which was in Wade’s County East district.
The North Fields, roughly 2,800 acres of farms west of Highway 40 and north of Midway Lane, will now be part of Nelson’s Midway district.
At next week’s meeting, the county council will finalize voter precincts, which are smaller voting zones within the geographic districts where area-specific ballots are mailed.
The next council meeting will be held Wednesday, January 19 at 3 p.m. at the county administration building at 25 North Main Street in Heber City. People can also attend online by visiting wasatch.utah.gov.
