DEMOPOLIS – District 3 now has its own polling place after the city council Thursday designated Demopolis High School as the new precinct.

Meeting in a special council meeting at 8 a.m., council members moved the precinct from Demopolis Junior High School to the new high school after it was discovered the junior high was in actually located in District 1.

“It wasn’t a big problem,” said City Attorney Rick Manley, who has been handling redistricting issues for the council. “We just failed to double check the locations.”

The junior high, located on Pettus Street, is only about one block into District 1 under the city’s new redistricting plant that was submitted to the U.S. Dept. of Justice for approval in April.

Justice still has the plan under the review, but is expected to render a decision by Aug. 3.

According to the submitted plan, the boundary line between Districts 1 and 3 is along East Whitfield Street, rather than East Pettus Street, near the junior high.

“It has been determined that the current District 3 voting site, Demopolis Middle School on East Pettus, is not within District 3,” said City Clerk Vickie Taylor.

The council unanimously passed a resolution designating the high school as the voting site for the 2004 Demopolis Municipal Election on Aug. 24.

Manley said another possible location, at the old high school building where the Canebrake Players currently perform, was discussed for use as the polling

place, but that accessibility was much better at the new high school building off U.S. Highway 80 West.

“There was the issue people having climb stairs at the old building, and the new high school is level, clean, has restroom facilities available and is much nicer,” he said.

The county currently uses the new high school building as a polling place for county, state and federal elections, meaning many voters in the city’s District 3 are familiar with voting at the school, he said.

The city’s other voting locations are:

District 1: U.S. Jones Elementary School on East Jackson Street;

District 2: National Guard Armory on U.S. Highway 43 South;

District 4: Demopolis Fire Station on U.S. Highway 80 West; and

District 5: Westside Elementary School on Mauvilla Drive.