www.nyc.gov/districting Commissioners Benito Romano, Chair Jamila Ponton Bragg Scott Cerullo Kamillah M. Hanks Robert W.

Hart Linda Lin Oscar Odom III Thomas Ognibene Frank Padavan Roxanne J. Persaud Madeline Provenzano John Robert Gloria Carvajal Wolfe Marc Wurzel Justin Yu Staff Carl Hum Executive Director Office 253 Broadway, 7th Fl New York, NY 10007 212-442-6940 info@districting.nyc.gov

December 14, 2012

Dear Fellow New Yorker: In an effort to obtain additional public input regarding the plan for dividing New York City into fifty-one districts for the election of members of the City Council, prior to its final adoption, on December 4, 2012 the NYC Districting Commission withdrew the plan from the Council. In doing so, Chair Benito Romano articulated the Commissions commitment to ensuring that the district plan fairly represents all of the voters of the City of New York. To that end, the Commission will hold an additional round of public hearings prior to the final submission of the plan to the Council. As this third round of public hearings and meetings approaches, the NYC Districting Commission is interested in hearing your comments on the plan for the City Council district lines. As you know, the participation of New Yorkers like yourself is vital to the districting process. Listed below you will find ways you can participate in this important process. First, you can attend one or more of the upcoming public hearings: Borough, Date and Time MANHATTAN Monday, January 7th 6:00PM 9:00PM BRONX Wednesday, January 9th 6:00PM 9:00PM BROOKLYN Thursday, January 10th 6:00PM 9:00PM QUEENS Monday, January 14th 6:00PM 9:00PM STATEN ISLAND Tuesday, January 15th 6:00PM 9:00PM Location Hunter College Auditorium (Entrance on E.69th St.) 695 Park Avenue New York, NY 10065 Hostos Community College Repertory Theater 500 Grand Concourse Bronx, New York 10451 Saint Francis College Founders Hall Auditorium 180 Remsen Street Brooklyn, NY 11201 LaGuardia Community College Little Theater 31-10 Thomson Ave. Long Island City, NY 11101 Staten Island Borough Hall 10 Richmond Terrace Staten Island, NY 10301

You can pre-register for speaking time at a public hearing through the Commissions website at www.nyc.gov/districting, by clicking on Pre-Register to Give Hearing Testimony on the left sidebar.

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www.nyc.gov/districting

Prior to the upcoming hearings, you can also submit written hearing testimony to the NYC Districting Commission by mail: NYC Districting Commission, Attn: Jonathan Ettricks, 253 Broadway, 7th Fl. New York, NY 10007, or by email to: hearings@districting.nyc.gov, or on the Commissions website at www.nyc.gov/districting on or before 5:00 P.M. on the date of the hearing. You should indicate in your correspondence the date of the hearing for which you are submitting comments. Districting Commission Maps: All Citywide and Borough maps can be accessed online by visiting our website at www.nyc.gov/districting and clicking Maps on the left sidebar. You may also view the proposed plan in person at the following locations: NYC Districting Commission Office 253 Broadway, 7th Floor New York, NY 10007 Bronx Borough Hall 851 Grand Concourse, Suite 301 Bronx, NY 10451 Brooklyn Borough Hall 209 Joralemon Street Brooklyn, NY 11209 Staten Island Borough Hall 10 Richmond Terrace Staten Island, NY 10301 Flushing Library 41-17 Main Street Flushing, NY 11355

Free, Online Mapping Software is available. A free, online version of Maptitude, state-of-the-art mapping software, is publicly available for anyone who has internet access and wants to create and submit district plans to the Commission. Maptitude contains the same datasets used by the Commission in its work to redraw New York City Council districts. You can access Maptitude by visiting our website at www.nyc.gov/districting and clicking Create a Council Map on the left sidebar. The Commissions Resource Room is still open. If you are interested in creating your own district plan but you do not have access to the internet or need assistance using the software, our Resource Room, located at the Commission offices at 253 Broadway, 7th Floor, contains computers loaded with Maptitude software. It is open by appointment only from Noon - 7PM on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and from 10AM to 3PM on Monday and Friday. If you would like to make an appointment, please contact Justin Bassett at (212) 676-8983 or jbassett@districting.nyc.gov. Speakers Bureau has been reopened. The Speakers Bureau dispatches Commission staff to make presentations to community groups and other organizations about the districting process and how the public can have its voice heard. To make an appointment for a speaker, contact Jane Li at (212) 442-6619 or jali@districting.nyc.gov. On behalf of the Commission, we sincerely hope that you are able to continue participating in the New York City Council districting process by attending a public hearing or meeting, submitting written testimony, creating an alternative plan, and/or by taking advantage of the Speakers Bureau. Sincerely,

Carl Hum Executive Director