I favor the FDPA peoples map
My name is Michel Wilcox. I reside at 1172, Old Route 322, Cochranton, PA 16314-1718 in Venango County. I am a retired farmer and agri-businessman who farmed in Mercer, Crawford, and Venango Counties. I would like to offer here a few reasons why I think that Venango, Crawford, and Mercer Counties should be in the same PA Senatorial district as recommended by Fair Districts PA in their proposed Peoples Map. • Their proposed district two is similar in demographics throughout. o Few minorities in all of Northwest or North Central PA are available for inclusion. o Large rural populations with mostly small businesses comprise most of the proposed district with a few manufacturing, tool & die, technology, farming, and trucking/transportation companies. P o Three counties are entirely included with no splitting or gerrymandering. The adjacent small area of Erie County included has similar demographics. • Crawford Area Transit Authority provides transportation services throughout Crawford and Venango Counties. • Meadville Medical Center, located in Meadville and Titusville has provided Venango County residents with services for many years. When Covid-19 vaccinations were yet unavailable in Venango County, my wife and I were vaccinated at MMC in Meadville. • Titusville School District in Crawford County is part of Venango County in statistics and funding, such as student assistance. Students from Titusville attend Venango Technology Center. Manufacturing industries such as Franklin Industries, work with Pitt campus at Titusville for machinist training. • The Northwest Behavioral Partnership includes Crawford, Mercer, and Venango Counties and provides managed mental health and substance abuse services for Medicaid funded services. • The Child Development Center now provides the larger part of child care services to Venango, Crawford, and Erie counties as a regional provider. • Community Services of Venango County is the provider of early childhood services to Venango and Crawford Counties as their main resource. • Venango, Crawford, and Mercer Counties are included in the Regional Emergency Management Co-op for Emergency Services. • The Oil Region Alliance provides heritage, recreational, tourist and economic services to both Crawford and Venango Counties. • The population statistics for Northwest PA of the Peoples Map recommended by Fair Districts range from 254 thousand to 259 thousand. The proposed district 2 comprising Mercer, Crawford, Venango, and the small portion of Erie comes in at 257 thousand. • The LRC map proposal for the same general counties would range from 249 thousand to over 270 thousand. Finally, in the redistricting of US Congressional districts, most proposals shift Venango County into the district with Crawford, Mercer, Erie, Lawrence and portions of Butler Counties. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to present my view. I'll register to speak Friday or Saturday if possible.