The San Juan County Redistricting Committee will host a series of public meetings to gather input as it begins planning to redraw the six County Council districts.

The committee must follow these state guidelines: each district must have nearly equal numbers of people as determined by the 2010 census, district boundaries should encompass areas that are contiguous and compact, districts may not favor or disfavor political or racial groups and district boundaries should endeavor to preserve existing communities of related interest.

The committee is studying options for meeting those guidelines and representing the public’s interest. Examples of those options will be presented at the public meetings. Two meetings have been held on Waldron Island and San Juan Island. The next meeting is July 29, 4 p.m. at the Eastsound Fire Station 45 Lavender Lane, Orcas Island.

The Redistricting Committee can be contacted at redistricting@sanjuanco.com

For more information, visit www.sanjuanco.com/elections.