When it comes time to vote in the fall, many Austin residents will find themselves in a new ward.

The Austin City Council has approved the proposed redistricting plan for the city at Monday's special council meeting.

City Clerk Lucy Johnson explained the redistricting was necessary because figures from the 2000 census showed the Second Ward of Austin was too large, compared to the First and Third Wards. The redistricting plan shifts 1,055 Second Ward residents into a new ward of the city.

Additionally, 609 people will switched to a new precinct within their wards.

The proposal keeps the boundary of the First and Second Wards along Oakland Avenue but would move it down to the Mower County Fairgrounds (Fourth Avenue SW) at 12th Street SW and would continue eight blocks eastward. This would add a four-by-eight block section to the First Ward and 352 people from the Second Ward to the First Ward.

Under the proposed plan, the boundary between the First and Third Wards would continue to follow the Cedar River, but would go west at 19th Avenue NW until Fourth Avenue NW where it would go north to the city limits.

The boundary between the Second and Third Wards would move west to the Cedar River from Fourth Street SE until the river crosses at Main Street. This would move 703 people from the Second Ward to the Third Ward.

However, voters don't have to worry about the changes for another few months. "This will not be in effect until the primary election day, which is Sept. 10," Johnson said.

Also at the meeting, council approved rezoning land given to the city by Hormel Foods Corp. for the new ice arena. With a 6-1 vote, the land was rezoned from an industrial business district to a community business district.

The only vote against the ordinance came from council member Pete Christopherson who said he did so because "I want to be consistent. How are we going to maintain it? We still don't have a plan for that."