Which California Counties should be split up? (people, census)

[pecanku]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Why?

I actually see so much unnecessary redundancy that I think counties should be combined in NorCal.

Alameda and Contra Costa should be combined.

San Francisco and San Mateo should be combined.

Marin and Sonoma should be combined.

Santa Cruz and Monterey should be combined.

San Joaquin and Stansilaus should be combined.

And so forth.

We dont need most of the poorly managed county bureaucracies that exist in CA today.

Actually I don't agree with this. A model more like Texas, the second most populous state and with the most counties is more appropriate. More jobs, living and other services can be provided with more counties.

[EdJS]

Originally Posted by pecanku

Actually I don't agree with this. A model more like Texas, the second most populous state and with the most counties is more appropriate. More jobs, living and other services can be provided with more counties.

I don't know. Texas has a lot of counties with almost no people in them.

[SoCal25]

Originally Posted by pecanku

Here's something I researched just now from the Wikipedia on this topic: The 5 most populous states in the U.S. in respective order are: California, Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois. The number of counties in each state in that same order are: 58, 254, 67, 62 and 102. The density of each county by state population is, also in that same order: 669,008 , 106,130 , 296,915 , 318,488 and 126,280 . Those are the average number of residents in each county per each state.

What is significant about these numbers is the average number of residents per county in California. Doing the math, California needs to almost double, that's right double the number of counties to serve its residents more adequately with jobs, living and services, just to get to the level of the next state on this list of most crowded counties, which is New York, even more than double to get to the next state, Florida, Illinois is the next state of most crowded counties, then Texas. Texas with the most counties and second highest population has a good model for this, so it appears.

Would all this help for rezoning California? The posts in this forum are good starting points. Also California is pretty much the median for the number of counties in each state. Although states generally have more county divisions back east rather than here out west, I find it a better motto to follow here.

I'm missing the part where counties are some kind of magically effective government that provides jobs, "living" [not sure what that's about] and services. What are they creating tax revenue out of nothing to pay for all this? Additionally, are you going to split the City of LA into multiple counties to hit the 'ideal' county density? The last thing CA needs is even one additional bureaucrat, elected official, or appointee and their associated grifters.

[mwruckman]

Originally Posted by Dave Coe

Los Angeles: Santa Monica County(Santa Monica, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Calabasas, Agoura Hills)

San Bernadino: Northern half could Mojave County

Santa Barbara: Northern half Mission County

Alameda: Eastern suburban half Online County

Countra Costa: Southern Wealthier half Diablo County.

From time to time it has been suggested that The Valley or Valleys secede from LA. How about a new County called San Fernando including the Valley and Pasadena, La Canada, Arcadia, Alhambra, San Gabriel thrown in for good measure. Plus the San Gabriel Mountains and all of LA county north of the Valley.

[armourereric]

I frequently wish that far eastern San Diego County could be separate. Call it Laguna County

[crouching_tiger]

We should instead split California into NorCal (California) and SoCal. When people say they hate California they mean they hate SoCal and LA so it will avoid that confusion.

[kttam186290]

Originally Posted by Dave Coe

Los Angeles: Santa Monica County(Santa Monica, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Calabasas, Agoura Hills)

San Bernadino: Northern half could Mojave County

Santa Barbara: Northern half Mission County

Alameda: Eastern suburban half Online County

Countra Costa: Southern Wealthier half Diablo County.

Western Contra Costa County (Danville, Alamo, Walnut Creek, San Ramon, Orinda) could be it's own county. Divide it somewhere around Clayton and make anything east of Willow Pass part of "Antioch County".

[Dave Coe]

Originally Posted by kttam186290

Western Contra Costa County (Danville, Alamo, Walnut Creek, San Ramon, Orinda) could be it's own county. Divide it somewhere around Clayton and make anything east of Willow Pass part of "Antioch County".

The North//South divide is more significant since the Southern half is Wealthier.

[payutenyodagimas]

Originally Posted by pecanku

San Francisco is its own city and county. Would Los Angeles, San Diego and San Jose, all of which are larger, be better off being their own counties?

OC should be consolidated as county and city too

[pecanku]

Originally Posted by Des-Lab

How many times and ways is this topic going to be driven into the ground?

It's not that I wouldn't LIKE to see the state drawn and quartered, it's just that I don't [yet] see it happening anytime soon.



This question has been asked and answered more times than can be counted. And the outcome is almost always the same every time, with few minor variations:

• Los Angeles
• Inland Empire/Orange County/San Diego
• Central Valley-roughly Bakersfield to Stockton
• Central Coast
• The Bay: San Jose/Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento
• Far North
• Give Inyo, Mono, and Eastern Kern Counties back to Nevada since those are really geographically if not politically part of the Silver State anyway.

--> It probably would not happen anytime soon, I agree there. There is always some historical significance with how county and state lines are drawn. However if we all agreed with history then we wouldn't be talking now. If in 10 years from now say, nothing has changed in this regard, then things cannot improve. Voicing how changes can be made possible is always a good thing!