May we have the Council's instructions please.

wu  COUNC

AUG 25 1975

TO: Mayor and Aldermen July 24th, 1975

FROM: R.A. Freeman
City Clerk

Re: Provision of Additional Polling Stations - 1975 Municipal Election

On the reverse side of this Memorandum is a small street map of the City
showing the boundaries of the 16 enumeration areas in the City. The
location of the City's 5 present Polling Stations is shown by an 'X' in:

a circle and a suggestion for the location of 3 additional Polling Stations
is shown by the uncireled 'X' - Lincoln Elementary School, Port Coquitlam
Senior Secondary School, and Kilmer Elementary School.

Last year was the first time the Polling Station at Westwood Elementary School
had been in operation and we had a very good turn-out there and we feel that
this. was occasioned, at least in part, by the special notice that we sent to
people in Enumeration District No. 3 advising them of the location of the

new Polling Station. If Council agree to establish the 3 new Stations, we
would propose that similar notices be sent to the electors in Enumeration
District No. 2 with respect to Lincoln Elementary School; to Enumeration
Districts Nos. 1 and 5 with respect to Port Coquitlam Senior Secondary School;

and Enumeration Districts Nos. 15 and 16 with respect to Kilmer Elementary
School. ,

The cost of operating a Polling Station varies with the number of separate
ballots involved and the expected turn-out, but a 'ball-park' figure would
be from $250.00 to 300.00. The other alternative that presents itself, of

course, is to eliminate small Polling Stations scattered throughout the City

in.schools and instead establish two large Polling Stations in both the

City's Recreation Centers, i.e. one on the North Side and one on the South

Side. We could then staff these Polling Stations for the heavy turn-out -

there would be and bring extra help in to count the heavily increased number

of ballots at each Station. There are several advantages to the large Polling

Station concept as it would make it easier to ensure that efficient standard

procedures ave maintained at each Poll and the candidates would doubtlessly

find it easier to assign scutineers, transportation, etc. if they only had

two Polls to concern themselves with. There is also good parking adjacent

to each of the Recreation Centers, but the Recreation Programmes would

doubtlessly have to be suspended or cancelled on that day so that we could

. have the use of the large floor area necessarily required. Although the

individual citizen would doubtlessly find the change confusing for the first
year or two, most persons coming to vote, do so by car and the change should
therefore make little difference. However, the concept of the individual
neighbourhood Polling Staticn seems to be firmly established and has operated
reasonably well in the City for many years, but the City has simply grown

past the point when five Polling Stations can handle the vote on a "neighbour-
hood" basis and a decision must be made to either consolidate or expand.

RAF/w City Clerk