2. Election/precinct changes for 2006

CASS COUNTY GOVERNMENT ..a.. Auditor Michael Montiplaisir, CPA 701-241-5601 Treasurer Charlotte Sandvik 701-241-5611 Director of Equalization Frank Klein 701-241-5616 Box 2806 211 Ninth Street South Fargo, North Dakota 58103 Fax 701-241-5728 www.casscountygov.com November 4,2005 Bruce Furness, Mayor City of Fargo PO Box 2083 Fargo ND 58107-2083 Darrel Vanyo, Chairman Cass County Government 211 9th Street South Fargo ND 58103 Re: Precinct Realignment for 2006 Dear Mayor Furness and Chairman Vanyo: A change in state law this year requires the city and county to have changes in precinct boundaries completed before December 31 st. Every election cycle, we look at the vote totals for precincts, growth patterns, and polling sites to see if we need to make any changes before elections. We have a couple of precincts that need some attention. In the last General Election, the number of people voting in Precinct 27-05, FM Convention and Visitors Bureau, caught us by surprise. While we expected growth in that precinct, the amount of growth created problems with overcrowding at the polling place. We remedied the situation this year by moving the polling place to a larger facility at the Southwest Hockey Arena, which we will use again next year. Another solution may be to move part of the precinct into the neighboring polling site, Precinct 27-04, West Acres JCPenney Wing. In the 2004 General Election, there were 2,628 voters at Precinct 27-05 and 1,048 voters at Precinct 27-04. Of the 2,628 voters, about 45% came from an area north of the interstate; therefore, if the change in boundary was made, there would be a little over 2,000 voters in 27-04, which is manageable and about 1,550 in 27-05, which will allow for growth that is occurring in that area. I have included a map with the current precinct boundaries and a map showing the proposed boundaries of27-04 and 27-05, along with the changed legal description of the two precincts. The other change involves precincts on the north side of Fargo. Precincts 45- 03 and 45-05 are both located at McKinley School but have two separate election boards. We would like to simply combine the two precincts into one. The board would have multiple ballots--one with the City of Fargo, one without the City of Fargo, and one with the City of North River. This is similar to what we do on the south side of Fargo at Precinct 27-06, Riverview Place. The combined precinct would have approximately 1,800 voters, which will be manageable for the next election cycle. Sincerely, '1fl~1?l~ Michael Montplaisir Cass County Auditor