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By JOYANNA LOVE | Managing Editor

District boundaries for the Maplesville Town Council are set to change based on the 2020 census numbers.

Proposed new district lines will be presented at a public hearing set for 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 12 at Maplesville Town Hall. Residents will have the opportunity to view the map and ask questions during the meeting.

Town Clerk Dawn Smitherman said the 2020 census showed a decrease in population from the 2010 census of 71 people. In 2010, the census reported 708 people in the town. However, the 2020 census reported 637 residents.

“We feel like a lot of people did not fill out their census forms, but there is nothing that we can do about that,” Smitherman said.

With the decrease in population, each of the town council districts have to be reviewed to ensure that the population within each of the districts is within 5% of each other. New district boundaries must also keep the current town council member in the district they are serving in.

The town hired Alabama State University to assist in figuring out where the new district boundaries need to be and to create a new district map for the town.

Just how many residents would be in new districts under the new plan is unknown.

If there are no errors or issues with the new proposed district boundaries, then the map will likely be voted on by the council during the regularly scheduled meeting that will follow the public meeting.

The council will also consider the proposed budget for the next fiscal year at its Sept. 12 meeting.