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County Commissioner districts set to change

On September 17, newly-apportioned districts will go into effect in Washington County. The effort to redraw the districts resulted from a measure approved by County voters in 2014, which amended the County charter to tighten the standards for balancing populations between the four commissioner districts. Previously a district had to have 115% more or fewer residents. The standard is now 105%. Rather than wait for the 2020 Census to act on the new standards, the measure included a mid-cycle update.

The Population Research Center at Portland State University prepared a report which identified five boundary options. A sixth alternative was developed based on community and Board feedback on the report and was ultimately approved by the Commissioners. One goal was to redraw the districts so that anticipated growth in some areas won’t push them out of balance too quickly.

Washington County is structured as a Council-Manager form of government. The five-member Board of Commissioners (BCC) handles all legislative issues. There are four commissioners elected by the voters in their districts, plus the County Chair who is elected countywide. The Commissioners also serve as the governing board for Clean Water Services, a public utility providing wastewater, stormwater and other services.

Because most of Cedar Mill is not in any city, the BCC is our governing body. They pass ordinances that affect everything from land use to taxes to health regulations. According to the 2014 estimate, the county has about 563,000 people, so each commissioner represents approximately 141,000 people.

The commissioner for our area is Greg Malinowski, who was re-elected in 2014. We are in the middle of District 2. The biggest change for our district is that now a large portion of Helvetia has been added, and some of the southern parts that include Beaverton are now in District 1, represented by Commissioner Dick Schouten.

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