TO: Washington Redistricting Commissioners My family has resided in the of Washington since April, 1990. 2 of our children graduated from Lake Washington High School in Kirkland and 1 from Interlake High School in Bellevue. All three attended the University of Washington. According to the economic forecasts released shortly after we moved to Washington, Bellevue was expected to evolve from a suburban city to the business hub of the Eastside. That forecast is now a reality and has been accompanied by the tremendous growth of Microsoft and other high tech development and support services in South Redmond. With this growth has come new roads, highway improvement, homes, commercial buildings, business centers, schools, social services, and city services and infrastructure that now call for a wide range of services and a more diverse workforce than existed in the days when Bellevue and Redmond were described simply as suburbs across the lake from Seattle. In 2001, I and other community members from the Eastside testified before the Redistricting Commission to request representation for a growing community of interest (COI) extending from . We urged redistricting commissioners to acknowledgge this community of interest and create a legislative district that would allow voters in the community to elect candidates of their choice to represent them in the state legislature. Over the last 10 years the So. Redmond-148th Ave NE COI has continued to grow, but its has been . NOTE: Currently, the 48th district extends from Hunts Point, Medina and Clyde Hill, downtown Bellevue and Kirkland across I-405 through Overlake, Crossroads and Lake Hills to West Lake Sammamish; while the 41st district, which includes most of Mercer Island, and West Renton runs east through Factoria, Eastgate, New Castle and Renton Highlands. It should be noted that none of the 41st or 48th state legislators live in this community of interest. In the past, people of color from this COI have had to look to Seattle minority communities and legislators to address issues of racial profiling, excessive police force or school district inequities. The South Redmond-148th Ave NE COI is vastly different from Clyde Hill, Medina, the point communities, Mercer Island and Downtown Bellevue. This statement is supported by property tax assessments, apartment and rental housing costs, , and and free and reduced lunch participation and test scores. If we were to plot on a map the locations of ethnic grocery stores, churches and language schools, we would find that the majority of them are located East of
TO: Washington Redistricting Commissioners My family has resided in the of Washington since April, 1990. 2 of our children graduated from Lake Washington High School in Kirkland and 1 from Interlake High School in Bellevue. All three attended the University of Washington. According to the economic forecasts released shortly after we moved to Washington, Bellevue was expected to evolve from a suburban city to the business hub of the Eastside. That forecast is now a reality and has been accompanied by the tremendous growth of Microsoft and other high tech development and support services in South Redmond. With this growth has come new roads, highway improvement, homes, commercial buildings, business centers, schools, social services, and city services and infrastructure that now call for a wide range of services and a more diverse workforce than existed in the days when Bellevue and Redmond were described simply as suburbs across the lake from Seattle. In 2001, I and other community members from the Eastside testified before the Redistricting Commission to request representation for a growing community of interest (COI) extending from . We urged redistricting commissioners to acknowledgge this community of interest and create a legislative district that would allow voters in the community to elect candidates of their choice to represent them in the state legislature. Over the last 10 years the So. Redmond-148th Ave NE COI has continued to grow, but its has been . NOTE: Currently, the 48th district extends from Hunts Point, Medina and Clyde Hill, downtown Bellevue and Kirkland across I-405 through Overlake, Crossroads and Lake Hills to West Lake Sammamish; while the 41st district, which includes most of Mercer Island, and West Renton runs east through Factoria, Eastgate, New Castle and Renton Highlands. It should be noted that none of the 41st or 48th state legislators live in this community of interest. In the past, people of color from this COI have had to look to Seattle minority communities and legislators to address issues of racial profiling, excessive police force or school district inequities. The South Redmond-148th Ave NE COI is vastly different from Clyde Hill, Medina, the point communities, Mercer Island and Downtown Bellevue. This statement is supported by property tax assessments, apartment and rental housing costs, , and and free and reduced lunch participation and test scores. If we were to plot on a map the locations of ethnic grocery stores, churches and language schools, we would find that the majority of them are located East of
Eastside_Community_of_Interest.docx