The U.S. Census Bureau creates Census Blocks for each decennial census. For the 2020 Census, the Census Bureau identified 780 Census Blocks in Goochland. Census Blocks are the geographical areas about which the Census Bureau reports its data. In creating a redistricting map, we cannot divide a Census Block; our proposed districts and precincts are created by bundling together Census Blocks.
Census Blocks are required to have clearly observable boundaries, generally those are streets, highways, rivers, or creeks. On the Proposed Redistricting Map, black lines show Census Block boundaries.
Each Census Block on the Proposed Redistricting Map contains a listing of three numbers: the first number (4-digits) is a shortened Census Block Identifier; the second number is the Adjusted Population from the Census Bureau. The third number is not from the Census Bureau data, but is the number of Registered Voters residing in that Census Block based on data from Goochland County’s General Registrar as of November 10, 2021. The number of Registered Voters is included because that number is needed to create proposed precincts.
In a number of instances in the Proposed Redistricting Map, the number of Registered Voters in a Census Block is larger than the Adjusted Population number. This is because of the differences between the two data sets. The Adjusted Population is a number provided by the Census Bureau based on its collection of data from residents in the 2019-2020 time period. The Registered Voter data comes from the General Registrar’s database and is current as of November 10, 2021. The gap in time between the two data sets is significant: between June 2020 (when the Census Bureau should have been finished collecting data) and now, the number of Registered Voters in Goochland has increased by 1,586.
So, for instance, look at Census Block 1003 in District 5 near the border with District 4. The Adjusted Population in that Census Block is 17 and the number of Registered Voters is 88. Census Block 1003 encompasses a portion of the Mosaic subdivision which is under construction; accordingly, there were few residents in that area when the 2020 Census data was being collected, but many more who built, moved in, and have registered as voters by November 10, 2021.