YOUR INPUT NEEDED, STARTING THIS SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, ON FUNDAMENTAL CHANGES TO SAN MATEO'S VOTING SYSTEM!
The City of San Mateo is in the process of transitioning from at-large elections to district elections, which means the City will be split into districts with residents voting for one council member who resides in their district (vs. voting for five council members who represent all the City). This is an important opportunity for San Mateo residents to share input about their neighborhood and help determine how districts are created. The process is about ensuring fair representation. The City is committed to engaging as many people as possible, particularly those who have been historically underrepresented. There is a very compressed timeframe for this transition. The first draft maps of the new City Council districts will be presented to Council at a Thursday, Sept. 30th meeting. The process is expected to be completed by November 15th and will go into effect for City Council elections in 2022. More information is available at www.cityofsanmateo.org/districtelections How You Can Get Involved:
Fill out a Communities of Interest form (available in English, Spanish and Chinese) to share how you describe your "community of interest" by physical landmarks and/or by culture, language, issue, etc.
Sign up to attend a virtual hearing or in-person workshop to learn about the process and give your input on how the new districts should be drawn. NOTE: The first workshop will be this Saturday, Aug. 21st, 10am-11:30am at the San Mateo Public Library Main Branch on 3rd Avenue. It will be very easy for Baywood residents to attend this workshop and make their voices heard early in the process.
Spread the word and share this email with your San Mateo neighbors and networks and on social media (esp. Nextdoor).
Ask your Baywood neighbors to sign up for Baywood Bulletin emails so they stay up to date on this fast-moving issue and other areas of interest. Just have them email baywoodhomeowners@gmail.com.
YOU are whom your friends and neighbors will listen to first, so please help us spread the word. Members of your BOIA Board will be at the first workshop this coming Saturday. We look forward to seeing you there and to working together on a successful transition to district elections.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN THIS IMPORTANT PROCESS!