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New Medford council layout due for OK By MELISSA MARTIN Mail Tribune The Medford City Council is expected to give final approval this month to a new ward boundary map that divides the city roughly along Crater Lake Avenue. The council recently considered new maps that would have divided the city along Jackson or Hillcrest, created a downtown ward or increased the number of wards to six or eight. But council members chose the map that more equally distributes population and uses a natural dividing line. "I think this division of Crater Lake Avenue was probably the most logical," said Councilman Skip Knight. "It also has the best proportional distribution of voters of any options that we looked at." State law requires the city to change political districts when populations shift. In Medford, growth is moving farther east, which created a disparity in current wards, said Medford senior planner Rob Scott. The council is expected to give final approval to the new boundaries during a Dec. 20 meeting. Here are descriptions of the new wards. Every ward meets at the intersection of Crater Lake Avenue and Jackson Street. Ward 1, Northeast Medford -The western boundary is a line that begins north on Crater Lake Avenue to the urban growth boundary. The southern boundary begins east on Jackson Street, north on Pearl Street to Oregon Avenue, east on Oregon to Sunrise Avenue, north on Sunrise to Harrison Street, east on Harrison to Valley View Drive, north on Valley View to Spring Street, east on Spring to Brookdale, north on Brookdale to McAndrews Road, east on McAndrews in a straight line to the urban growth boundary. The population is 15,950 and is represented by Jim Key and Ed Chun. Ward 2, Southwest Medford - The eastern boundary begins south on Crater Lake Avenue to East Main, east on East Main to Willamette Avenue, south on Willamette in a straight line to Bear Creek, south on Bear Creek to Barnett, west on Barnett to Interstate 5, south on I-5 to the urban growth boundary. The northern boundary begins west on Jackson Street to Fourth Street, west on Fourth Street to Oakdale Avenue, north on Oakdale to Pennsylvania Avenue, west on Pennsylvania to Columbus Avenue, north on Columbus to Sunset Avenue, west on Sunset in a straight line to Ross Lane, south on Ross to Jacksonville Highway, west on the highway to the urban growth boundary. The ward has 15,924 people represented by Sal Esquivel and Skip Knight. Ward 3, Northwest Medford - Shares the eastern boundary with the western boundary of Ward 1. The southern boundary is the same as the northern boundary of Ward 2. There are 16,073 people represented by John Michaels and Claudette Moore. Ward 4, Southeast Medford - The northern boundary is the same as the southern boundary of Ward 1 and the western boundary is the same as the eastern boundary of Ward 2. There are 15,288 people represented by Bill Moore and Bob Strosser. Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4497, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.